More Than A Shadow
by DeadlyCaribbeanMidget
Summary: Narumiya Azusa has always been known as the younger sister of Narumiya Mei. However, she is tired of living in his shadow, resulting in her shocking decision of going to Seido High School instead of following him to Inashiro. Azusa is determined to prove to Mei, a certain catcher, and more importantly to herself that she is more than a shadow. Miyuki Kazuya X Fem OC.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello there! I hope you're doing well! It's been a while!**

 **I'm so excited to be writing this author's note because it means that I'm finally starting this fic. I love new beginnings!**

 **This fic is going to be different from my other two. Without spoiling it, I can say that is going to be long as hell, there is going to be a lot of pining involved, and real slow burn. Also there is going to be a lot of Mei, a lot of the seido team, and Miyuki and Azusa won't get together that fast. Also, this will cover the first and second season of the anime and it will go through all the way until koshien in the act ii of the manga. So that's a major difference since it will be my first time including manga content.**

 **I hope that you're here for the ride and that you enjoy it.**

 **I would like to thank you for your support.**

 **I would like to specially thank Mrcleanheichou for helping me brainstorm and come up with ideas during my planning process.**

 **As always, if you have any comments and/or suggestions please let me know.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Daiya No Ace, Yuji Terajima does. I only own my OC and sort of this plot.**

 **Enjoy!**

" _You can do it Mei!" Azusa yelled from the stands amidst the constant cheering for Mei. It was a small stadium but it was packed as if it was a high school baseball game since everyone wanted to check out the new prodigious pitcher. She couldn't help but to watch down in awe as her older brother demonstrated his skills._

 _They were playing against the Edogawa Dragons in the semi-final game of the junior high summer tournament. The game was close but they were winning 5-4. Only one more out and they were going to be in the finals._

 _Mei pitched again only to get a ball, but she wasn't very worried despite the fact that there were runners on both second and third base. The batter was the catcher Miyuki Kazuya and he had yet to get a hit off of Mei. So she didn't think that it was going to be any different now. During clutch moments like these, players usually get flustered and make rash decisions. Despite the catcher showing level-headnesses and resilience, he hadn't shown any extraordinary batting skills since he got struck out at every one of his at bats. He was also short like Mei (well not as short as Mei since everyone was taller than Mei) and was very small with glasses looking too big on his face. Definitely not an intimidating batter at all._

' _But it would ease my nerves if he stopped pitching his fastball. It's obvious to me that the runners on base have thrown Mei off his game since his pitches are getting more rough. I'm pretty sure that the batter has yet to notice though,' Azusa mused in mild concern._

 _Mei geared himself up to pitch again and Azusa groaned as she noticed that he was going to throw a fastball. Again. 'Why does he obsess over certain pitches all the darn time?'_

 _Miyuki stepped right in as if he knew what Mei was going to pitch already and the ball made perfect contact with his bat. It flew over past the shortstop and it hit the fence resulting in a home run._

" _What?"Azusa's mouth hung open in disbelief while everyone else in the audience was also surprised. 'How did that even happen?'_

 _She watched the runners advancing to the home plate still in a state of shock. Everything happened so fast and she was sure that they were going to win._

' _Did… did the catcher know about Mei's weak point?'Azusa pondered while she glanced over at Mei. He was looking down at his feet and she was sure that he was hiding his tears. Mei hated losing more than anything else in the world._

 _What kind of player was Miyuki Kazuya?_

 _Azusa got up from her seat in a dejected mood as she made her way out of the stadium along everyone else in the audience. She decided to wait for Mei and his team outside. She was the only person from elementary school so it was not like she could hang out with Mei's classmates from junior high. She couldn't wait until next year so she could be in junior high and be like the older kids. She was tired of being treated like a little kid. She was eleven years old already for god's sake._

 _Azusa then shook her head. 'You gotta grow up. Stop thinking about that. Right now the most important thing to do is to cheer up Mei. He probably is feeling very down now.'_

" _Oi Azusa! What are you doing standing there by yourself?"Azusa heard Mei obnoxiously calling out her name. He was close to the exit looking all sweaty and dirty from the game with his white uniform on._

 _Azusa clenched her fists in annoyance as she walked towards him. "I was waiting for you," she said in a restrained tone._

" _Were you now? You're such a good little sister. Going to your amazing onii-chan's game and then wait for him all by yourself. Without caring that you may look like a friendless loser," Mei said in a teasing tone._

 _Azusa growled in anger. "What did you just say? You're such an ingrate," she hissed through gritted teeth._

" _Ingrate how? I'm recognizing the great sacrifices that you make for your dearest older brother," he teased again with a toothy grin._

" _Why you?" she growled again._

" _Hey you!" Mei suddenly called out. "The third batter."_

 _Azusa blinked in confusion since he was not talking to her. She followed his line of sight and turned around to notice that he was calling out the catcher who was behind her._

 _The catcher turned around to face both her and Mei with a nonchalant expression gracing his features._

 _Mei, however, was unfazed much to Azusa's surprise. Mei didn't like being disregarded, ignored, or losing. So the fact that he didn't show any signs of annoyance was surprising to her. "It's been a very long time since someone got a hit off me like that," Mei said in a matter-of-fact tone._

 _Miyuki didn't say anything at first. "I can't really respond to that," he said. "I can't discuss your weak point since you're going to be an opponent again in the future."_

 _Azusa gasped._

 _Mei gasped as well. "What? Weak point? What do you mean?"the pitcher demanded._

 _Miyuki didn't say anything as he walked away._

" _Next time I'm not going to lose you hear me?" Mei yelled again._

" _So he noticed your weak point too," Azusa said to no one in particular._

" _Don't tell me that you too Azusa," Mei said with a pout while turning to her. "What is this weak point that you two are talking about?"_

 _She didn't say anything as she stared out at Miyuki's back. So her suspicions were correct. He knew too. Azusa felt the corners of her lips curl into a smile. That catcher was not an ordinary player._

" _It seems like I underestimated you, Miyuki Kazuya."_

'Bzzz'

A loud buzzing sound filled the room in the midst of darkness. It was very early in the morning. The sun still hasn't come out yet making the task of waking up much harder to a particular young girl.

"Shut up,"Azusa grumbled while she took her phone from her nightstand. She got up as she turned off the alarm of her phone. She rubbed her eyes while absentmindedly looked around her room. It was messy with shoes scattered across her room, the wooden floors could be a bit cleaner, and her clothes were on her desk across from her bed. Along with her vanity who looked like a mess since she didn't organize any of her toiletries. Not to mention that her bed was going to join in the messiness since she wasn't going to make her bed. If she was going to sleep on her bed again at night then what was the point of making her bed? However, she would never admit any of this to her mother who always nagged her about keeping her room clean. That along with always saying how she should be more organized like her older sisters.

Azusa got out of bed and checked her reflection in the mirror as she pinched her cheeks to wake up. She had a little bit more color on her with her pink cheeks. Not like it would matter anyway. She still looked like a junior high student, despite the fact that today was going to be her first day of high school. Azusa had newly grown out thick blonde hair past her shoulders, with bangs adorning her face, sparkling innocent-looking blue eyes, and a petite shape. Not to mention her small B- cup breasts much to her disdain. She could almost fool anyone. The only thing going for her was her height. At 5'7 she was taller than most girls since the national average was 5'2.

"Stop being so stupid. Who cares about that? You're not going to Seido to get a boyfriend," she told her reflection in the mirror. "You're going there with a mission."

After that, she left in a hurry to the bathroom to take a quick shower and get herself ready for school.

Today was the first day of the most important journey of her life so far.

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' _This is such a huge campus,'_ Azusa thought amazed by the open vast grassy fields and the baseball fields as she walked through the Seido grounds. She felt her mood lighten up as she looked around and gawked at the batting cages and all the top notch equipment. She couldn't wait to start her duties as a manager since she was so excited. The only thing missing was the bright sun since it was still a little dark out, foggy, and she felt the cold spring chilly air. It couldn't be helped since it was very early in the morning for the time meeting.

She fastened her pace to get up to the dorms' entrance where all the managers were going to meet before going out to the field. There all the players would introduce themselves to the coach and existing team members. She already had her manager's uniform on since she didn't want to be late in her first day.

Finally the 'Seido's Spirit Dorm' came into view indicating her that she was already there. "Don't we have a very eager first year today?" A girl with pigtails said in a teasing tone. She was standing next to another girl around the same height as her with a pixie cut. Along with a taller girl with long black hair and bangs framing her face. They were all wearing red, white, and blue tracksuits just like her.

Azusa blushed at her comment. "What's wrong with being on time?" she chided in a defensive tone.

"Weren't you the first one to arrive last year Sachiko?" the girl with the pixie cut teased the pigtailed girl, ignoring Azusa's comment.

"What? No, I wasn't," Sachiko said with a small blush.

"Girls," the taller girl said in an authoritative tone making the other two clear their throats and stand up straight. Then she turned to Azusa. "You must be one of the new first- years," she said.

Azusa nodded. "Yes, my name is Narumiya Azusa. Nice to meet you," she politely introduced herself with a small bow.

The taller girl gave her a small smile. "Nice to meet you too. My name is Fujiwara Takako, and I'm a third-year. "Takashima-sensei told me about you," her last comment surprised Azusa. Why would Takashima-sensei mention her in particular ? Did she tell her about Mei?

"My name is Natsukawa Yui, and I'm a second-year," the girl with the pixie cut said with a small smile as well.

"And I'm Umemoto Sachiko, a second-year as well," the girl with the pigtails said with a grin.

Azusa nodded in acknowledgement.

"We're just missing one more first-year," Takako said while looking around to see if someone was coming.

Azusa cocked her head to the side since she didn't know there was going to be another first year starting with her. "Is-

" _Suminasen_ ' a redhaired girl yelled while running towards them. She promptly stopped in front of them while bending over her knees trying to catch her breath. "I'm Yoshikawa Haruno."

"You're late," Sachiko chastised.

"Introductions are about to start," Takako pointed out with a stern look.

"I'm so sorry," the girl said in between breaths. "I tried so hard."

"The coach is very strict about punctuality," Yui said, warning her.

Haruno looked more disheartened by each different comment and Azusa couldn't help but to feel bad for her.

"Are you okay? You looked like you were in a bad shape in the bathroom," Azusa asked in a concerned tone, crouching beside Haruno and placed her hand on Haruno's back.

"Huh?" Haruno shot her a puzzled look.

"What do you mean?" Takako asked.

Azusa turned to Takako. "I was about to tell you _senpai_ ," she began in a timid tone. "Before coming here I went to the restroom and there I found her. She looked so sick, and I offered to take her to the infirmary but she refused. She pleaded me to go introduce myself to you guys, so there would be at least one first-year manager on time," Azusa explained in the most convincing manner she could while pinching Haruno.

Takako turned to Haruno. "Is that true?"

Haruno widened her eyes in surprise. "I… Uh… Yes… It's true. My stomach was a little bit unsettled… But that was because of my nerves! I'm fine now! I promise."

Takako sighed in relief. "In that case then I guess it's fine. There is no need to overexert yourself in the first day."

Azusa also sighed in relief since her lie seemed to work.

"Now let's go, we don't want to be late," the older manager said, turning on her heel and leading the way. The second-year managers followed, with Azusa and Haruno trailing behind them. Then Azusa felt something tug at her sleeve, and she turned around to see that it was Haruno.

"Thank you," the red headed manager mouthed to her.

Azusa just smiled at her.

"No problem."

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Azusa stood alongside the other managers with Rei while the coach was introducing himself and then let the first years introduced themselves as well. The coach was tall and looked intimidating with his sunglasses and erect posture with his arms crossed across his chest with the older players standing behind him.

As the first-years started introducing themselves, she couldn't help but to get giddy with excitement since the first years seemed promising. They all came from outstanding teams that she had heard of. Even teams that got to play at a national level. However, she shouldn't be surprised since Seido always recruits top notch players like every school of its caliber.

"He came here late, but he's trying to sneak into the line!" Someone yelled from afar.

Azusa flinched as she recognized that masculine voice and her eyes fixated on a brunette boy who was frozen on his spot along with everyone else.

While the coach was reprimanding him in a quiet yet authoritative tone, she noticed that someone sneaked into the group of the second and third-years behind the coach. She recognized that someone. It was the person whose that voice belonged to. Miyuki Kazuya.

' _Of course it was him. He was the only one cunning enough to think of that plan and then use someone else to take the fall for him. That first year looks too innocent to concoct something like that,'_ Azusa thought while lowering her gaze to the ground. She didn't want to take any risks and have Miyuki recognize her.

"Now run for the entirety of morning practice," the coach told the boy. "The same goes for his two roommates, and the guy who sneaked into the line while of this was happening."

Azusa quietly laughed to herself as she slightly looked up and noticed Miyuki's shocked expression along with the other two. One of them was about her height with spiky green hair and the other one was bigger with a buzz cut and moustache.

' _That's what you get for being sneaky. Wait until Mei finds out about this,'_ she devilishly thought.

All four them went to run laps as instructed but Azusa couldn't help but to stare at the late first year.

She didn't know why but time will definitely tell.

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Both Azusa and Haruno hit the ground running. The three older managers explained to them what their main responsibilities were and showed them around the fields so they knew their way around it. At first, Azusa was not intimidated by any of that. She was already used to the world of competitive baseball, but as her _senpai_ explained things more and more to them everything seemed more daunting little by little. Most of the assignments were not rocket science, but they were… A lot. Not to mention that she was always a little bit on edge since she was dreading the possibility of Miyuki recognizing her. She didn't want him to see her. At least not just yet. She was exhausted by the time morning practice ended and the players went to the cafeteria for lunch. Azusa exhaled the most profound sigh of relief of her life so far since she desperately needed a break.

But the break seemed that it went by in a flash.

"Are you still not done picking up the baseballs?" Sachiko asked both Azusa and Haruno while approaching Azusa.

"Yes, I'm done," Azusa said with relief while showing her the small basket full of baseballs.

Haruno came sprinting up to them with a smile on her face. "I'm done too- AHHH," she screamed as she fell on the ground along with the baseballs that spilled out of the basket.

Azusa wanted to facepalm so bad but refrained from doing so.

Sachiko groaned, crouching down and then picked up one of the balls and hurled it to Azusa. "No, you're not," the older manager said. "Pick up this mess both of you and then bring it to the shed. We have to prepare the drinks. You two are going to slow us down with your clumsiness," she added in a curt tone before turning around and leaving them to their duties.

' _Hai,'_ Azusa said in the most respectful tone that she could muster.

The truth was that she didn't like being reprimanded or being told what to do.

' _It wouldn't have killed her to be a little bit nicer,'_ the blonde thought as she bent over and started the picking up the baseballs from the ground.

"Ugh, it's getting too hot," Azusa complained feeling the sun's heat on her back. It was already afternoon practice, and she was already feeling the fatigue.

"I'm so sorry," Haruno profusely apologized while picking up the baseballs that she dropped. "You have to do extra work because of me."

Azusa shot her a small smile. "You don't have to apologize," she said. "It's our first day, and we're bound to make mistakes. Besides, we're both first-years, so we have to stick together."

Haruno slowly nodded. "Thanks for being so understanding."

Azusa only nodded in acknowledgement. She couldn't lie. Usually, she would get mad and irritated in this type of situation but she couldn't find the heart to get mad at Haruno. The poor girl looked so sweet and innocent. Like a cute little puppy. And it didn't help that the older managers were being tough on them. She was already struggling as it was so Azusa decided to be patient with the redheaded manager.

"I'm getting the ones over there!" Haruno pointed to the far corner of the field.

"Alright! I'll keep picking these up," the blonde said while putting some baseballs back in the basket.

"I'm here to be the ace!" both managers heard a voice yelled. They promptly turned around and noticed it was the same first-year who was late in the morning.

Since they were far away from the players, Haruno and Azusa couldn't hear what they were saying that much. But it was obvious that he was being brazen and disrespectful again. The coach pitched a ball straight to the fence surprising everyone. The coach's skills were not rusty at all. Next, the coach handed him a ball and then pointed to the fence. Azusa assumed the first-year had to hit the fence in order to be forgiven or something along those lines.

"Is he going to make it?" Haruno asked while they both watched him prepare to throw the ball.

The loud-mouth first year threw the ball with all of his eagerness, and it looked as if it was going to make it which surprised everyone. However, that was until all of the sudden the ball curved; failing to make contact with the fence, prompting everyone to laugh.

"Oh no he failed. I feel so bad for him," the redheaded manager said.

Azusa didn't say anything as she looked deep in thought. _'It curved? But how?'_ Azusa pondered. There was something peculiar about that throw.

"Although those baseballs were not the ones you dropped, I'm still going to pick them up since we're still going to have to do it later. Might as well just do it now," Azusa announced as she walked towards the field that the players were using to practice. Haruno just nodded while she continued on her with her duties.

' _Was this the reason why he piqued my interest?'_ she asked herself. Perhaps. It was most likely that. But the only way to be sure was to observe him pitch up close. She couldn't wait to witness his pitching but if he keeps being disrespectful then she wouldn't be able to see it until next year. If she was lucky, that is.

Azusa walked all the way to the fence to pick up the ball that Sawamura threw as if it was magical and would give her the answers. It was absurd but she did it, nonetheless. She bent over to pick up the baseball since she couldn't afford to waste much time before the managers scold her again.

" _Oi_ , what are you doing with that ball?" she heard someone asked her prompting her to turn around to see who it was. And lo and behold it turned out to be the pitcher.

Azusa narrowed her blue eyes at him. He had short brown hair, brown eyes, and he wasn't that much taller than her. "This?" she asked holding up the baseball.

" _Hai_ ," the pitcher said with a nod and then he shot her a confused look. "Wait. Aren't you a girl? What are you doing here?"

"I'm a manager, which is quite obvious judging from my uniform. Are you dumb or what?" she replied with a snort.

The pitcher clenched his fists in anger. "Who are you calling dumb?"

"You, you _baka_ pitcher," Azusa deadpanned.

"My name is not ' _baka_ pitcher' you blondie!" the pitcher yelled in anger. "It's Sawamura Eijun!"

Azusa rolled her eyes while putting her hands on her hips. "I don't care," she said nonchalantly. "But don't ever call me blondie again!" she warned with a menacing finger.

"Blondie! Blondie! Blondie!"Sawamura yelled.

Now it was Azusa's turn to get angry as she growled." _Baka_ pitcher! _Baka_ pitcher! _Baka_ pitcher!" she yelled back."Why are you even here? Don't you have to be running laps anyway? Since I doubt the coach is going to allow such a dimwit like you to join practice," Azusa chided.

"Why you?" Sawamura hissed. "I just wanted to see the ball."

Azusa snorted again. "Why? Were you going to ask the ball why it curved?"she mocked despite the fact that the only reason why she came to this side of the field was just for mere curiosity. But there was no way in hell that she would admit that to him.

"That was just a fluke! I could do it if I was a given a second chance!" the pitcher said.

Azusa burst out laughing. "There are no second chances when the stakes are this high."

Sawamura was taken aback and blinked in confusion showing her that her statement had some type of effect in him.

"Azusa-san! I'm already done!"Haruno yelled from the opposite side while waving her hand in the air.

Azusa waved back. "Coming!" she said to haruno before turning to Sawamura for one last time. "See you _baka_ pitcher!" Azusa added with a wink before leaving to catch up with Haruno.

"My name is Sawamura Eijun!" the pitcher angrily reminded her but it was to no avail since Azusa didn't turn around.

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"Good work girls! See you tomorrow bright and early," Takako said with a faint smile.

Standing alongside each other, Haruno and Azusa bowed at the same time. "Thanks."

They were at the entrance of the campus, and night had fallen upon them along with the end of practice.

"Good night!"

" _Oyasumi,"_ both Haruno and Azusa said to Takako for the last time and started making their way home.

Azusa sighed in relief despite feeling her aching muscles and numb feet. "Thank goodness is over, right?" she asked Haruno as they both silently walked down the dimly lit streets.

Haruno nodded. "Yes, it was such a long day."

"And we have to do it all over again tomorrow,"Azusa said with a sense of dread.

"Don't remind me. My feet hurt so much,"Haruno said with a shudder. "But also… I don't want to complain too much. After all, it was my dream to become a manager."

"And it's also the first day. We can't seem like whining babies,"the blonde manager added.

Haruno nodded. "Yes, you're right…" she said and then glanced at Azusa. " _Ne_ , was it your dream to become manager too?"

Azusa's eyes widened in surprise since her question caught her off guard. "Something like that… You can say that," she vaguely replied as she avoided the other manager's gaze.

Haruno didn't seem too convinced with her answer and stopped to a halt. "I have to go this way now," she said, pointing to an alley on her right.

"I still have to go straight to get to the bus stop," Azusa said pointing to the street ahead. "So see you tomorrow and don't be late! My excuse won't work again."

Haruno nodded. "I'll wake up early. I promise. See you tomorrow!"

"Bye!" Azusa waved her newfound friend goodbye before continuing to walk towards the bus stop. Thankfully it was not that dark and the streetlights along with the lights of the convenience stores made it less scary for her to walk home alone at night. She had to make it home in one piece or else her parents are going to have fit and get all overprotective since she was the youngest of four. She also promised them that she was going to be fine since she could take care of herself so she couldn't prove them wrong.

Azusa quickened her pace to a power walk since she didn't want to risk anything, despite the fatigue that was settling in her muscles. Perhaps she was getting paranoid but even before Haruno left she was feeling as if someone was following her. She didn't hear any unusual noises but couldn't shake the feeling of a presence behind her. It was an odd eerie feeling that she just couldn't shake.

Then she heard the faint sound of footsteps.

' _What's that? Is someone really following me? Should I turn around? No, don't turn around. That's stupid!'_ she berated herself and decided to walk even faster to get to the bus stop even faster.

But the footsteps were getting louder which meant that someone was indeed following her.

"Who is it?" she finally asked as she turned around despite not wanting to.

"AHHHH," someone screamed.

"AHHHH," she screamed as well while covering her eyes.

"Why did you have to scare me like that?" the mystery person asked her.

Azusa's heart rate quickened since she immediately recognized the voice. "Mei?" she asked, withdrawing her hands from her face.

"Yo," he simply answered with a grin gracing his lips.

Azusa narrowed her eyes at him. "Why did you scare me like that?"

Mei scoffed. "Me, scare you? _You_ were the one who scared _me_!" he replied in an indignant tone.

Azusa gasped. "How did I scare you when _you_ were the one following me, you idiot?!"

"I wasn't following you," he said, rolling his eyes. "I was just making sure that you got home safely,"he retorted.

"Same difference!"

"No, it's not!"

"Yes- you know what? Forget it," she said, shaking her head. She wasn't going to continue with the argument. "What are you doing here? Don't you have to be at Inashiro?"

"That's what I came to ask you!" Mei said in a demanding tone while glancing at her sky- blue eyes. "What are you doing here? Why did you decide to go to Seido at the last minute and abandon me? I thought you were going to Inashiro with me. You're such a bad sister!"Mei whined.

"Why not go to Seido?" Azusa deadpanned, ignoring his childish outburst.

"Because they're never going to nationals,"Mei replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

Azusa scoffed. "And how do you know that?"

Mei smirked. "Because I have my all-star team now," he said in an arrogant tone. "Even if Kazuya decided to go to Seido as well."

The younger blonde glared at him. "Your arrogance is going to get the best of you again, Mei," she warned. "Someone will give you a taste of your own medicine."

"Perhaps," he conceded with a shrug. "But one thing I know for sure is that is not going to be Seido. So why don't you come to Inashiro when there is still time so you can be on the winning side?"

Azusa clenched her fists in anger. "Even if I knew for good that Seido was never going to nationals, I still wouldn't go to Inashiro with you and your all-star team. You're so arrogant and self-centered that it's irritating to no bounds. So forget it and stop wasting your time!"

Mei pouted. "But why?" he demanded. "You've always been there helping me.I thought you were on my side."

She glared at him again. "The world doesn't revolve around you, Mei."

"But yours does," he said. "It's always been like that."

"No, it does not!" Azusa angrily exclaimed. "And if you think that, then you're nothing but a self-centered idiot! I'm not going to Inashiro!" she yelled before running towards the bus stop on her own.

"You're going to regret it, Azusa!" Mei yelled as she ran away.

His claim fell on deaf ears. Azusa knew that she was not going to regret her decision of choosing Seido over Inashiro. She was tired. She was tired of it all. Mei was right. She's been with him for all of her life playing baseball and helping him improve every step of the way. Azusa was always content tracking his progress but as time passed by she was seeing herself only living in the shadows of the great Narumiya Mei. But not anymore. She had to find her own path; away from Mei. But that was something that someone so selfish as Mei wouldn't understand.

He wouldn't understand that she was tired of living in the shadows.

But she was going to show him.

She was going to show and prove to him and to everyone else that she was more than a shadow.


	2. It's Not As Easy As It Looks

**Hello there! I hope you're doing well and that you enjoyed the first chapter!**

 **I'm so happy to see the positive comments follows/favorites. It's so rewarding to see.**

 **I apologize for not uploading this chapter sooner. I've been busy with work. Ideally I want to update twice a month to move things along. Hopefully I can do that next month! A.K.A my birthday month!**

 **I hope you are liking Azusa so far and her interaction with Sawamura lol. There is going to be a lot of that coming soon.**

 **Miyuki is going to make his formal appearance soon but not quite yet. In the third chapter to be more specific. Just taking a page out of Terajima's book with how the manga was going for a while lol.**

 **I apologize beforehand for any grammar mistakes.**

 **Thanks for your support.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Daiya No Ace. Terajima Yuji does. I only own my OC.**

 **Enjoy!**

Chapter Two: It's Not As Easy As It Looks

" _Why is this so hard?" Azusa asked, complaining as she grew more exasperated. She was cleaning the dirty metal baseball bats with a cloth. "This is literally such a menial task! So why is it harder than it looks?" she said through gritted teeth as she wiped harder with each word._

 _Being manager was not as easy as she thought it would be. Since she always helped Mei with everything from catching his pitches, helping him practice, to cleaning his personal equipment at home, she thought it would be a piece of cake. But taking care of one person doesn't compare to taking care of an entire team._

 _Even if Mei's personality is worse than two teams combined._

" _Maybe because the players use it a lot," Haruno, who was sitting next to her on the ground offered. "At least look at the bright side."_

 _Azusa snorted. "Which is?"_

" _That we're almost done," Haruno replied with a small smile._

" _No, you're not," Sachiko said, standing behind them._

 _Haruno shuddered at her presence._

 _Azusa shot daggers at the older manager. "Why not?"_

 _Sachiko smirked while crouching down on the ground and took a baseball bat. "There is a smudge here," she said, pointing to a faint black smudge on the base of the bat. Then she dropped it to the ground and took another one. "And this one has a smudge here," she pointed to another faint black smudge on the top part of the bat. "You're doing a sloppy job."_

" _No, we're not!" Azusa argued. "There's almost nothing there!" she exclaimed while pointing to the spot that Sachiko was referring to._

" _I don't want 'almost nothing' I was nothing!," the pigtailed manager said with air quotes. "It has to be spotless."_

" _But no one can see that," Azusa insisted._

" _Azusa-san," Haruno whispered to her in fear since she was defying the older manager but Azusa didn't care._

" _But I can and that's all that matters," Sachiko said in a firm tone. "Now stop wasting time arguing with me. You still have to clean those up and also these," she added while putting a bucket of baseballs in front of them._

 _The two first-year managers went pale as they gasped in horror._

" _W-we have to clean the baseballs too?" Haruno asked._

" _Yup," Sachiko replied with a cheeky grin._

 _Azusa narrowed her blue eyes at the manager. "And what are you going to be doing in the meanwhile?" she asked with disdain._

 _Sachiko raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"_

" _She didn't say anything!" Haruno exclaimed, covering Azusa's mouth. "We're going to work as hard and fast as possible senpai," she said with a nervous laugh._

" _Good," Sachiko said in a flat tone before turning around to leave._

 _As soon as Sachiko was nowhere to be seen, Haruno released Azusa._

" _Why did you do that for? I needed answers since she's been really hard on us since day one!" Azusa angrily demanded._

" _What were you thinking?" Haruno asked her in turn. "Talking back to a senpai? Do you want to get in trouble?"_

 _Azusa rolled her eyes as she huffed in exasperation. "I'm not scared of her."_

" _But I am," Haruno said. "So don't do that again!"_

 _Azusa just looked away annoyed._

" _Azusa-san?"_

" _..."_

" _Azusa-san!"_

" _What?" she snapped, turning around._

" _You have to promise that you won't do it again," Haruno said in the most firm tone that she could muster._

 _Azusa quietly growled to herself before letting out a sigh to calm down her anger. "Fine," she simply replied before going back to her task._

 _Being a manager was not easy._

"My name is Sawamura Eijun, and I'm going to be the ace!" the pitcher declared in front of all of his classmates during class.

Azusa rolled her eyes.

' _Especially not if I'm the manager of a team where this buffoon could be the ace,"_ she thought as she spared Sawamura a glance. Unfortunately, she was stuck with him in class since not only they were both in the same classroom, but also sat right next to each other.

Everyone in class burst out laughing at his declaration after a long pause of silence.

Even the teacher who was scolding him for sleeping in class previously.

Azusa wasn't surprised. Why didn't he think before sputtering nonsense out loud? It was as if he liked getting embarrassed in public.

Then the school bell rang indicating the end of class and the start of lunch. Everyone got up from their seats happily as they chatted away, forgetting about Sawamura's outburst. The pitcher was just looking around annoyed.

"You truly surpass my expectations when it comes to your stupidity," Azusa said without bothering to spare a glance towards the southpaw.

"What was that?" Sawamura angrily said, putting his fist in the air.

"Are you deaf now too?" she asked while narrowing her eyes at him and propped her elbow on the desk to rest her chin on her hand.

"My hearing is perfectly fine, blondie!" he said the last part with disdain.

"Don't call me blondie, wannabe ace," Azusa sneered at him.

"Who are you calling wannabe ace? I'm going to be the ace of this team!" Sawamura declared with determination.

Azusa had to give it to him.

He had spirit and an unyielding will.

But she wasn't going to let him know that; at least not yet.

Azusa scowled at him but then let her expression settle into a neutral one; deciding to stop fighting. "How?" she inquired in a curious tone.

Sawamura blinked in confusion. "Huh?"

"How are you going to be the ace?" the blonde manager reiterated. "Kanemaru-kun was right. You're not even officially on the team."

The pitcher flinched and averted his gaze for a quick moment only to make eye contact with her again. "That's not going to stop me. I just need to prove my skills to the coach and show him that I'm good enough to be on the team."

Azusa snorted. "That's not even a concrete plan."

"Shut up!" he said with a small blush. "You'll see today at practice. I'll show everyone that I'm worthy to be on the team."

Azusa burst out laughing which caught Sawamura off guard.

"W-what's so funny?" he asked, confused.

Azusa continued laughing while wiping a tear off her eye. "You truly are dumb," she said between fits of laughter. "Not to mention out of the loop."

"What do you mean?" Sawamura asked in an exasperated tone.

"It means that you won't be able to show off your skills during today's practice. Since we're going to play against Ichidai Third High in the spring tournament, _baka,_ " she explained.

"What? Why didn't anyone tell me?" he shrieked.

"Well be-"

'Bzzz'

"Huh?" Azusa looked down to her uniform skirt and took out her phone from her pocket. She got a new text message.

 _Mei:_

' _Stop ignoring me.'_

Azusa glared at her phone as she read the text message along with the missed calls notifications.

"Stop bothering me," she wanted to type back but refused to. If she starts responding to any of his texts then he wouldn't really leave her alone.

'Bzz'

' _Stop being so mean and answer my texts Azu-chan :( '_

"What's wrong?" Sawamura asked, making Azusa jump out of her thoughts.

"I...uhh… Nothing," she stammered while putting her phone back in her pocket. She didn't want him or anyone to know about her relation to Mei. Even though she doubted that Sawamura knew who was Mei in the first place.

"Let me guess," he began with a devilish smirk. "I bet it was your boyfriend like the heroines in shoujo manga."

Azusa felt her face grew hotter as a blush spread across her cheeks. "S-shut up," she lamely shot back.

"So it _was_ your boyfriend?" he continued with a teasing tone.

"I don't have a boyfriend!" she exclaimed.

There was no way she could have a boyfriend.

The only guy she had eyes for was…

"Now that I'm thinking about it someone like you wouldn't have one," he quipped while tapping his chin thoughtfully.

"I said to shut up!" she yelled. "You better spend time thinking of how you're going to get on the team in the first place, you idiot!" she added fuming before storming out of the classroom.

She could only handle so much of Sawamura.

She also didn't want to be in a bad mood since she was going to watch the team play for the first time.

And a certain someone too.

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The game went well since Seido won but at the same time it was almost as if the team lost since the atmosphere was so gloomy. If she would've known how tense things were going to be, then she wouldn't had volunteered to pick up the request notebook from the cafeteria. All the players would write things that they need there and the managers would get it for them. But then again, she only had herself to blame considering how quiet the bus ride back to campus was.

Azusa quietly sneaked into the cafeteria from the back entrance that the cooks use. Then made her way into the actual dining area and let her eyes scanned the scene. All the players were getting their dinner, eating, and making small talk. There was no way they would notice her since they barely pay the managers any attention anyway. She also noticed Miyuki who was eating and talking to Sawamura.

' _Now it's my chance!'_ she thought before making run to the far corner and grabbing the small black notebook. She just has to get out and give this to Takako and no one would know that she was there. And by no one she meant Miyuki.

"What did you say?" she heard a masculine voice ask in an angry tone.

Azusa immediately looked up to see what was the commotion about. She noticed that some other players had angry expressions and got up from their seats. All of them were directed towards Miyuki.

' _Oh no! Don't tell me that Miyuki did something to anger those players,'_ Azusa thought in concern. _'They better not hurt him!'_

"You think you're good enough for Miyuki?" one of them asked.

Azusa blinked. _'So Miyuki is not at fault? Then who…'_ she then noticed that there was a tall guy with short black hair alongside Miyuki and figured that it was him.

"You really think that no one will hit your pitches? You're underestimating us, you cocky first-year!" another upperclassman exclaimed.

' _That's what he said. That's awfully confident of him.'_

"Enough. Stop ganging up on him," the former ace Tanba who was quietly sitting said in a calm tone. "Whatever you have to say, show it through baseball," he declared with arms crossed.

Azusa couldn't help but to agree with him.

And the other players seemed to agree too since his statement helped diffuse the situation.

However, she was not interested in moody upperclassmen.

At the moment, that was only reserved for that mysterious first-year.

*Time Skip*

After the confrontation, Azusa snuck herself out of the cafeteria through the entrance without being seen. She had to thank Furuya for that since his declaration completely changed the mood of the room.

"Azusa-san!" Haruno exclaimed, snapping Azusa out of her thoughts.

"Y-yes?" the blonde manager asked a little disconcerted.

"What are you doing just standing there?" Haruno asked.

"Huh?" Azusa looked around and realized that she was standing in the middle of the entrance. "N-nothing," she said with a nervous laugh as she moved aside. "Just picking up the request notebook."

Haruno gave her a slight smile. "I was on my way to see Takako-senpai, if you want I can give her the notebook and then we can meet at the entrance to go home together," she suggested.

Azusa nodded. "Thanks! That would be great," she said, handing Haruno the little black notebook. "I'll get my stuff then."

"See you soon!" Haruno said before going in the opposite direction.

Azusa was going to her locker to pick up her things but she glanced at the door and noticed that someone was coming.

A shadow of a fairly tall person was approaching.

Could it be?

As soon as the door swung open, her suspicions became true when she saw his figure.

"Furuya-kun?" Azusa asked while she leaned against the wall of the cafeteria.

The pitcher reacted in curiosity at the mention of his name and turned to her with a puzzled expression.

"Who are you?" he simply asked.

"I'm-" she stopped herself before revealing her name. If he was talking to Miyuki then there was the possibility of him mentioning her to the catcher. "I'm just a new manager for the team," she replied instead.

"I haven't seen you before," Furuya said.

Azusa giggled. "I'm not surprised," she said. "I don't think any of the players really pay us any mind," she added. "But anyway… That was a big statement that you made a while ago."

"Hn," he replied.

It was obvious that he was a man of few words; the complete opposite of Sawamura.

"Do you really think that no one will be able to hit your pitch?" the manager asked, unfazed by his nonchalant expression.

"I'm going to show everyone tomorrow," Furuya said in a rather confident tone. "And then I'll see if Miyuki-senpai can catch my pitches."

Azusa grinned at him. "Can catch? So you think that he won't be able to?"

Furuya remained silent as he looked deep in thought before replying. "I think he can," he finally said. "I hope he does," he added in an optimistic tone.

"Miyuki-senpai is the best catcher in Tokyo," Azusa said in a matter-of-fact tone. "So your pitches better be something special if you hope to form a battery with him."

"They are," Furuya retorted with a fiery silent aura. "That's why I came to Seido after I found out about him."

Azusa widened her blue eyes in surprise. "You came all the way to Seido just for him?"

Furuya stiffened at her question and averted his gaze with a small blush across his cheeks.

Azusa smiled at him. Despite how embarrassing he probably thought his declaration was, she couldn't find it in herself to make fun of him for that or for his reaction. Azusa could relate to him. Miyuki was a very magnetic person. So she isn't surprised that he had that effect in people; even if they don't know him. Specially since she came to Seido for similar reasons.

Azusa took a step forward away from the wall and spare Furuya glance. "Since you came this far then, I wish you good luck tomorrow," she said before waving goodbye.

She couldn't wait to see tomorrow's practice game.

Not just for Furuya, but also because of a certain loudmouth pitcher.

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"Here is more ice, Haruno!" Azusa said slightly out of breath as she sprinted towards the red-headed manager. They were stocking up the coolers near the field where the practice game between the first years and the senior players was taking place.

"Wow, that was quick," Haruno exclaimed while looking up at her. She was crouched down trying to refill a cooler with ice.

"I just didn't want to miss anything," Azusa replied while panting and setting the ice on the ground. "Did Furuya already go up to pitch?"

Haruno frowned at her. "If the _senpai_ notice that you're rushing through your work so you could watch the game they'll get mad," she warned.

Azusa narrowed her eyes at Haruno. "Oh please, as if you're not focusing on the game more than actually focusing on filling the coolers up," the blonde said in accusing tone. "I saw how you accidentally ripped the ice bag open on my way here because you were distracted."

Haruno blushed and averted her gaze. "I-I was just surprised because I wasn't expecting the coach to let Sawamura play in this game."

"What?!" Azusa said loudly while taking a step back in shock. "Sawamura is playing?"

' _Before Furuya?'_ she thought while she scanned the field. Granted she was extremely interested in seeing Furuya play to see if he really could back up his bold claims, but if she had the chance to see Sawamura play as well then that just would be the cherry on top. The loudmouth pitcher was unbearable, but she couldn't ignore the feeling that was telling her that there is something special about him.

A puzzled look graced Azusa's features when she saw a different pitcher on the mound. "What do you mean he is playing? He is not the pitcher," she asked, turning to Haruno.

"He is an outfielder," Haruno replied, pointing towards the right field.

"Well, that's no fun," she grumbled with a pout. She turned to the game and a ball was precisely flying towards the right field and lo and behold Sawamura looked so unprepared as the ball flew past him. "How can you miss that? He is so-."

Her words died on her lips as she watched him picked up the ball and throw it to third base where it hit one of the _senpai_.

The ball… Curved?

Everyone burst out laughing at Sawamura's mishap just like they did when he tried to hit the fence with his pitch.

"Oh no, I feel terrible for Sawamura-kun," Haruno said while looking around at the spectators who were laughing at the first-year pitcher. Then she turned to Azusa. "What's wrong?" she asked, noticing Azusa's pensive expression.

"It curved," the blonde manager replied in a cryptic tone. She crouched down on the ground and started helping Haruno with opening a new bag of ice. "This is not the first time that the ball curves when he throws it," Azusa elaborated.

Haruno cocked her head to the side while tapping her chin. "Maybe it's because he doesn't have a lot of experience so perhaps it's not significant."

' _Or perhaps it is,'_ Azusa thought while sparing a quick glance at the game unfolding. She didn't want to risk getting yelled at if nothing significant was going to happen in the game. To be honest, the practice game wasn't that interesting since the first-years were not playing with tenacity. Since they let the _senpai_ crushed their spirit without giving them any gave up too soon, and the only redeeming quality so far was Sawamura. Not that she would ever tell him that, of course.

Azusa disliked many things and at the top of the list were quitters.

There was nothing that she disliked more than a quitter.

"It seems like the first-years are exhausted," Haruno said while bringing another cooler and then set it down on the ground next to Azusa. "I feel bad for them."

"If they can't push through the fatigue now then, they are not going to be useful for the team," Azusa said in a rather harsh tone while stocking up the cooler with ice. They needed to store drinks for the players.

Haruno shot her a disapproving look. "Don't you think that-"

"Pitcher change, Furuya Satoru!" the coach's booming voice interrupted Haruno.

Azusa perked up. "Furuya is playing?" .

Everyone in the field started whispering among themselves in anticipation of seeing Furuya play. Azusa watched him as he slowly walked towards the mound and she couldn't help but to feel nervous for him. Which was silly considering how cool, calm, and collected he looked.

Was he really that confident that no one will be able to hit his pitch?

The batter positioned himself with a determined look since he, along with the rest of the older players, were eager to prove Furuya wrong.

Azusa watched attentively as Furuya raised his mitt up and extended his arm to throw his first pitch in a high school game. She didn't want to miss any single detail of his pitching because she wanted to know what kind of pitcher he was. However, his pitch was as strong and fast as lightning. Resulting in shocking everyone on and outside the field since not only did the pitcher failed to even graze it, and the catcher failed to catch it. But it actually went up and it hit the coach's mask off his face and fell on the ground.

Needless to say that she couldn't really tell anything from that pitch. It was so fast that she couldn't even analyze it.

All the players gasped in concerned; speechless. While some of them went up to coach to see if he was injured, but the coach only had a smirk on his face.

"You pass Furuya Satoru. Starting tomorrow you will be training with the first string team."

Not only did the older players were shocked at Furuya's pitch. But also protested when the coach declared that Furuya wasn't going to keep playing in the game. Since he declared that there is no first-year catcher who can catch his pitch. Meaning that forming a battery with Miyuki was imminent.

"He is not going to play anymore?" Azusa gasped. "That was a good pitch, but I wasn't expecting the coach to promote him to the first string."

"It seems like Furuya-kun made quite impression," Haruno said. "I haven't seen you look this surprised."

Azusa blushed and rolled her eyes. "I just wanted to see more of his pitching," she grumbled which made Haruno giggle.

"It also seems like you can be childish sometimes," Haruno added.

The blonde girl growled. "No, I'm not!" Azusa protested with clenched fists up in the air.

"Yes, you are," the redheaded manager maintained.

"No, I'm not!"

Haruno turned away from Azusa and gasped when she realized who was at bat. "Sawamura-kun is up to bat!"

Azusa forgot about their argument and glanced towards the batter's box only to snort later on. "Knowing him, he will also suck at batting."

"C'mon, you're not being fair to him," Haruno said. "At least give him a chance," she added in an optimistic tone.

"Strike one!" the coach yelled.

Azusa smirked. "Say again?"

Haruno looked down at her feet with a small blush adorning her cheeks. "It's just one strike."

Sawamura swung his bat blindly again.

"Strike two!"

Azusa snickered.

"Stop being mean!"

"How could I not be mean?" Azusa asked, stifling her laugh while Sawamura was gearing up to bat for the third time.

"Be-"

"Don't give up! The catcher dropped the ball!"someone screamed from the dugout.

"Huh?" both Azusa and Haruno stopped their banter and directed their attention to the game.

It seemed like the catcher did indeed dropped the ball since Sawamura seized the opportunity to run to first base at full force. He looked as determined as ever when he got to first base.

"He did it!" Haruno happily exclaimed.

"Well, it was about time someone got on base," Azusa said, dismissively.

"You gotta give him some credit," Haruno slightly chastised her which Azusa responded to with a snort.

"It seems like the pinch hitter is the one who helped Sawamura from the dugout," Azusa said, changing the subject. She inspected him closely. He had pink hair that covered his eyes and was on the short side. He kind of reminded her of Miyuki when he was younger. She could also feel a different aura about him and knew he was not like the rest of the first-years. What she also found interesting about him is that he was using a wooden bat instead of a metal bat. Not only because metal bats were more common but also because of his small build.

After having an embarrassing moment thanks to Sawamura since he revealed that they actually didn't go over signs, the new player changed the momentum of the game by cleanly hitting the ball which gave Sawamura the chance to run all the way to the home plate where he slid in the most fastest and decisive moment.

"Safe!" the coach yelled.

"He did it Azusa-san! He did it!" Haruno exclaimed again while clutching her arm.

Azusa just smiled at her. "That was a good run."

Sawamura's run revitalized the team to the point where the first years asked the coach to reconsider his decision of ending the game in that moment. He conceded but not before scolding them for their lack of spirit at the beginning of the game. Which was well-deserved in Azusa's opinion. At the end, she figured that it all played out for the best since because of that Sawamura got to pitch which made her feel excited again just like with Furuya. And she was not the only one considering that the feeling of anticipation was almost palpable in the air.

"Do you think he was kidding when he said he was going to throw all his pitches down to the middle?" Haruno asked her.

"I wouldn't be surprised if he actually meant it," Azusa replied while her eyes were glued to Sawamura.

Right off the bat, she noticed that his form was peculiar since he raised up his leg and his arm extended at a much later time. Unfortunately, she couldn't appreciate it since she was standing on the sidelines instead of the batter's box or at least the catcher's position.

"Strike one!"

"That was a really slow pitch for a fastball," Haruno noted.

Azusa nodded in agreement. "Maybe it has something to do with how pitches tend to curve."

"Like when he hit that player earlier?"

"Yeah. See how he struck them out and even also when the batters hit his pitch they got jammed? They are not getting the timing of his pitch right despite lacking speed and power," Azusa explained.

Haruno widened her eyes in surprise. "So it's not an ordinary fastball?"

Azusa flashed her a grin. "Not at all. His fastball moves at the plate," she said getting giddy with excitement.

Haruno shot her a confused look. "Why do you look so happy?"

Azusa started laughing. "Don't you think it's exciting, Haruno?" she asked. "We have two completely different pitchers in our year. This is why baseball is so fun! she exclaimed before giving Haruno a quick hug which left her disconcerted.

Before Haruno could say anything, Azusa left already deciding she didn't need to watch anymore of the game to confirm her suspicions.

Both Furuya and Sawamura showed a lot of promise and with them they could go to Koshien.

She was sure of it.

But before of that they both certainly had a lot to learn.

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"I'm going to be late, I'm going to be late," Azusa muttered under her breath as she jogged through the campus. She told Haruno to go ahead because she had some things to finish before calling it a night, but Azusa underestimated how long she was going to take. Now she was running late and was in danger of missing her bus. Which meant that she was going to have to wait for the bus alone in the dark much to her dismay.

' _I'm not going to get distracted, I'm not going to get distracted,'_ the blonde manager repeated the mantra in an effort to keep her focused and get to her destination as soon as possible.

"I'm not going to get distracted," she reiterated while trying to keep her eyes from wandering around. Without thinking she glanced towards the indoors training building and noticed Furuya coming out of it. He was wearing his sweatpants and a grey T-shirt but he was holding a mitt in his hand.

"Furuya?" she asked, shifting her book bag from one shoulder to another. Already forgetting her mantra. "What is he doing practicing at this hour?"

Unless…

"Furuya-kun!" Azusa called out his name as she jogged towards his direction.

Furuya turned around and blinked in confusion. "Manager-san?"

Azusa took a step backward as she grimaced to herself. _'Manager-san?'_ she thought to herself in amusement. That was an odd way to call her, but she figured she couldn't blame him since she didn't introduce herself to him.

"What are you doing here, Furuya-kun?" she asked, ignoring her new nickname.

Furuya averted his gaze away from her. "I was pitching," he vaguely replied.

"By yourself?"

"Hn."

Azusa narrowed her eyes at him. "Did Miyuki-senpai catch your pitches?" she pressed.

Furuya stayed silent and then glanced at her. "Yes," he finally said.

Azusa grinned to herself. "And?" she asked. "How was it?" she wanted to know all of the details.

"He actually caught my pitches," the taciturn pitcher replied. Azusa could hear the relief in his tone.

"I told you that he was the best catcher in Tokyo," Azusa said with a hint of pride in her tone. She was tempted to replace 'Tokyo' with 'Japan' but didn't want to seem too eager.

Furuya nodded. "You _were_ right," he said. "I'm glad that you were because I'm happy that I chose this school," he admitted with a sheepish smile.

Azusa smiled at him brightly and nudged him on his elbow which made him blush. "I'm glad that I chose this school too, Furuya-kun," she said.

"Why?"

"Because Seido has a lot of interesting players. The third-years with their impressive batting line-up and Miyuki-senpai. Also that pinch hitter Kominato-kun, you, and Sawamura," Azusa explained. "What's not to like?"

"Sawamura too?"

Azusa nodded. "Of course," she said. "You better not underestimate him."

Furuya narrowed his blue eyes at her. "I haven't underestimated him," he said firmly. "It's just that a lot of people take him lightly."

"Well, I'm not like a lot of people," Azusa said with a shrug. "And neither are you. Which is why I'm going to give you a word of advice."

"What?" Furuya asked in a curious tone.

"If you haven't been thinking about pacing and endurance then I suggest you start thinking about it now," Azusa said with a wink. "If not, then Miyuki-senpai will surely give you hell about it."

Furuya gave her a thoughtful look. "And why do you say that?"

"Well that is- Oh my goodness!" Azusa exclaimed in horror. "I got distracted, I got distracted," she said while running her hands through her blonde tresses.

"What are you talking about?" Furuya asked confused.

"I'm sorry, but I have to go now!" she said before sprinting ahead.

"But wait!" Furuya pleaded. "What did you mean? And do you happen to know Miyuki-senpai?" the pitcher asked to no avail since the girl was long gone.

Thankfully for Azusa she didn't have to face his question head-on.


	3. The Cat Is Out of the Bag

**Hello there! I hope you are having a wonderful summer so far!  
**

 **I also hope that you enjoyed last chapter. I know that it was Miyuki-less but I have to build stuff up. Not to mention that I have to foster Azusa's relationships with other people other than Miyuki. This is one of the reasons why this fic is different from my other two because they will also focus on other characters. Not just Miyuki X Azusa.**

 **But don't worry! As promised, Miyuki will make his formal appearance in this chapter.**

 **As always, I'm open to suggestions so feel free to leave any comments.**

 **Thanks for your support.**

 **I apologize for any grammar errors beforehand.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Daiya No Ace. Yuji Terajima does. I only own this OC.**

 **Enjoy!**

 **P.S.: Today is my birthday :)**

Chapter three: The Cat Is Out of The Bag

"I'm finally officially on the team!" Sawamura exclaimed in an excited tone. "I'm going to show the coach what the great Sawamura Eijun is made of. Hahahaha!"

Azusa rolled her eyes while adjusting the basket of baseball in her arms. They were walking alongside each other, making their way to the practice grounds. It was a nice day. Not only because it was sunny with comfortable warm breezes, but also because they somehow managed to not get into a fight for a whole ten minutes.

But that was about to change soon.

"About time, don't you think so?" the blonde manager asked.

Sawamura growled at her. "Shut up blondie!"

Azusa shot him a glare. "You know what?" she asked while she smirked to herself. "Maybe I should shut up."

The pitcher gave her a puzzled look. "Oh really?" Sawamura was surprised that she wasn't arguing with him.

"Yes, I shouldn't have said that considering that you're just heading down to a meeting," she explained while chuckling to herself.

Sawamura clenched his fists in annoyance. "A very important meeting!" the southpaw angrily clarified.

"Suuure," Azusa said in a mocking tone.

"I'm going to finally form a battery with Miyuki-senpai!"

Azusa snorted. "And how do you know that?" she asked.

Sawamura blinked in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Don't you tell me that you honestly think there is only one catcher on the team?" she deadpanned.

The brunet boy slowed down his pace as he sweatdropped. "Well…" he trailed off while nervously scratching his cheek.

' _What a dumbass,'_ Azusa thought before an evil idea came to her head.

"And..." she began.

"And what?" Sawamura asked in curiosity.

Azusa let a childish but yet evil smirk grace her lips. "There is also Furuya-kun," she added in an oh so innocent tone.

Sawamura gasped as he let the mention of Furuya's name catch him by the surprise, but the shocked look on his face was quickly replaced with a scowl. "I'm not going to let him win. I'm going to be in a battery with Miyuki!"

"Why do you want to form a battery with him so bad?" she suddenly asked in a serious tone.

"What do you mean why? That's the reason why I came to this school!"he declared before his cheeks heated up in a blush when he realized that he revealed more than he intended to.

"So you came to Seido for Miyuki-senpai as well?" her question sounded more like a statement.

"As well?"

Azusa quickly shook her head. "Never mind," she said with a dismissive tone. Then she re-adjusted her grip on the basket. "Either way forming a battery and being in a battery with Miyuki-senpai as well won't be that easy."

Sawamura narrowed his eyes at her. "And how do you know that?"

Azusa froze on her spot as she nervously gulped a thick lump down her throat. She quickly looked around to say something to distract him. She suddenly noticed that Miyuki was by the dugout along with Rei-san, Furuya, and another catcher.

"Why don't you go and find out?" she asked, motioning towards the dugout.

Sawamura turned around to see what she was referring to and paled when he realized that everyone was waiting for him. "Crap! I'm late!" he exclaimed before running towards the dugout.

' _That was close,'_ she thought in relief. Not only because of Sawamura's question but also because of how close by Miyuki was. Even though he was going to eventually find out that she was a manager for the team, she wanted to delay that for as long as possible.

Azusa walked towards the net so she could set down the baskets of baseballs alongside them ahead of practice. She was supposed to do that with multiple baskets. But curiosity got the best of her and she decided to stick around to see how the batteries were going to match up.

"WHAT?!" a loud voice startled her.

Azusa turned around to see what happened.

Although she didn't need to turn around to know that that voice belonged to the one and only Sawamura Eijun.

She assumed that things didn't go in his favor judging from the tone of his voice and mannerisms. It seemed to her that he was arguing with Rei-san and Miyuki.

"But I want to form a battery with Miyuki!" she heard him scream.

Azusa laughed to herself. _'I told you that forming a battery with Miyuki wouldn't be so easy,'_ she mused in amusement.

"Blondie-chan!"

Azusa stiffened at the mention of her name. She looked up and noticed that he turned around towards her direction and was staring at her.

What was he doing?

"Blondie-chan! Can you believe that this is happening to me?" he continued.

Azusa felt her heart beat race fast in her chest as she looked around. If he was looking at her then that meant that Miyuki was…

Azusa didn't say anything to him and decided to run towards the opposite side.

She wasn't ready to face Miyuki.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

"What are you doing here?" Sawamura asked in contempt. He stared down at Furuya who was sitting across the table from him.

"What are _you_ doing here?" Furuya asked, matching his tone.

The two pitchers glared at each other.

Azusa groaned out in frustration. "More like what are you two doing here?" she deadpanned.

Kominato let out a nervous chuckle. "C'mon guys, stop that," he pleaded. He was sitting next to Sawamura, while facing Azusa.

"What did you say?!" Sawamura asked, annoyed at Azusa.

Furuya turned to her. "But he was the one who started it, manager-san," he said.

Azusa took a bite out of her sandwich while she averted her gaze. "I don't care. You're both annoying now," she said, irritation dripping in her tone.

The southpaw just growled at her.

"I thought having lunch together was going to be nice but perhaps I was wrong in suggesting it," Kominato said.

Both Sawamura and Furuya blushed in embarrassment and for once they were quiet. The only sound that you could hear was the idle chatter of the school cafeteria.

"Don't worry Kominato-kun," Azusa said sympathetically, "It's not your fault that these two are uncivilized," she added while sparing a side-glance towards the two pitchers.

Sawamura glared at her. "Look who's talking! I bet that you're the most uncivilized manager ever!"

Furuya just nodded in agreement. It was obvious that his feelings were hurt.

Azusa felt her eye twitch in annoyance but then an idea flashed through her mind. "You two do realize that as manager I'm in charge of preparing your drinks and snacks, right?" she asked with a devious smile.

Both Sawamura and Furuya froze on their spots as they turned more pale by the minute.

Azusa snickered to herself while turning to her right to see Furuya's expression and then turning to Sawamura.

' _Serves them right!'_

"Hopefully I'm not on your bad side, Narumiya-san," Kominato said in a teasing tone.

"You could never be on my bad side even if you try, Kominato-kun," Azusa replied with a giggle.

"That's not fair!" Sawamura protested.

The manager shrugged. "Life is not fair," she said with a toothy grin.

"You're evil, manager-san," Furuya said in quiet tone.

Both Kominato and Azusa burst out laughing. Messing with the pitchers was fun.

Despite getting annoyed and mentally drained with the pitchers (specially Sawamura) from time to time, she couldn't deny the fact that she enjoyed their company. Azusa doesn't have a lot of friends, so it felt nice to joke around and tease each other. So she was certainly glad that Kominato came up with the idea of having lunch and hoped that they would have more lunches in the future.

Having lunch with them reminded her of the past. Of a much more simple time. A time where she was more carefree and enjoyed spending time with her brother Mei and Miyuki. They also had a lot of fun with their shenanigans.

" _I win again!" a young Mei declared in excitement. "But it's no fun if you two are always so slow," he added while snickering._

 _The trio would always hang out after games, no matter which team won or lost. They were friends on and off the field. They would usually go to a nearby park or by the river and just chat while eating snacks. But lately Mei always wanted to race them to the river since he was having more adrenaline than usual._

" _I just didn't want to leave Azu-chan behind," Miyuki said with a shrug while turning to Azusa behind him._

" _What?! Don't blame me, Kazuya!" Azusa angrily reprimanded him._

" _But it's the true though," Miyuki continued with his teasing. "You're a very slow runner but I guess you can't help it since you have short legs."_

" _Short legs? But I'm taller than you!" Azusa reminded him with a cocky smirk._

 _Mei burst out laughing._

" _By like an inch," the catcher said, rolling his eyes._

 _Mei kept laughing as he gripped his stomach. "S-she really got you good, Kazuya," the pitcher said through stifled laughter._

" _And what are you laughing about?" Azusa asked, turning to Mei. "You're shorter than Kazuya which means that I'm way taller than you," Azusa boasted._

 _Then it was Miyuki's turn to burst out laughing. "Now who got who?" the catcher taunted._

" _S-shut up!" Mei retorted lamely. "You two are always bullying me," he accused them. "So I demand some snacks to make up for the pain I'm through!"_

 _Miyuki snorted. "Snacks?"_

" _But I offered you some earlier and you didn't want to," Azusa said while crossing her arms across her chest._

" _Why would I want anything made by you?" Mei asked in an incredulous tone. "I love you but you're a terrible cook."_

 _Azusa clenched her fists in anger. "Why you?"_

 _Miyuki chuckled. "She would definitely poison you."_

" _You two are terrible!" Azusa complained._

 _It was not fun being on the receiving end of their teasing but she wouldn't change them for anything in the world._

"Narumiya-san, Narumiya-san," Azusa heard Kominato call out her name making her snap out of her trance.

"Yes?" she asked in confusion.

"Are you okay?" Kominato asked in concern. "You got really quiet there for a minute."

"You shouldn't have asked her anything Haruichi," Sawamura said with a scoff. "It was better when she was quiet."

Azusa fumed at him. "Don't you have to follow the training menu that Chris-senpai gave you?" she asked with contempt in her tone.

"Don't even mention his name to me!" the southpaw said indignantly. "His training menus are a waste of time. I want to start pitching not exercises."

Azusa snorted. "You really are stupid, aren't you? Chris-senpai is not going to give you a training menu just to waste your time. There is a reason for everything."

"Of course he would!" Sawamura argued. "He doesn't like me so that's why he's not allowing me to pitch."

"I wonder why," she said in a sarcastic tone while rolling her eyes.

"Besides, how am I supposed to take him seriously when he always leaves practice early?," the southpaw asked. "That is why I want to form a battery with Miyuki instead of him."

"If you really want to form a battery with Miyuki then I suggest you don't badmouth Chris-senpai around him," Azusa said. She didn't know Chris very well, but Miyuki had mentioned him to her in the past while they were in junior high. By the way Miyuki talked about Chris, she knew that he deeply respected the older catcher and wouldn't appreciate Sawamura's comments about him.

Sawamura narrowed his brown eyes at her. "And how do you know that?" he asked in suspicion.

Azusa's pulse quickened but she tried her best to keep her cool. "Well, Chris-senpai is older than him. So wouldn't it be obvious?" she attempted to give him a convincing explanation.

Sawamura shook his head. "Miyuki's not like that."

"Now that I'm thinking about it," Furuya began all of the sudden. "You seem like you know a lot about Miyuki-senpai," he said while turning to her.

Azusa gulped loudly. "Oh really?" she squeaked.

Sawamura nodded in agreement. "And every time I mention his name you get nervous," he noted. "Not to mention that yesterday afternoon when I called out your name you started running away from me."

"I had things to do that day and I didn't want to seem like a slacker thanks to you," Azusa quickly replied in an accusing tone.

"You always evade the subject when I bring up the question, manager-san," Furuya continued with his suspicions.

Sweat started beading on the manager's forehead as she felt nervousness overcome her. "No, I don't!"

"Yes, you do!" Sawamura said in an accusing tone.

Furuya nodded.

' _I'm screwed,'_ she thought.

"And I know why," Sawamura continued.

Azusa gasped.

' _How does he know?'_

"You, blondie-chan, are a member of the Miyuki fangirl club!" he declared loudly.

' _Oh goodness no… Wait what?'_

"What?" Azusa asked in disbelief.

"That's it right? He asked in a smug tone.

"No, it's not!" Azusa angrily replied.

But on the inside she was secretly relieved that Sawamura was dense beyond reason.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

After the lunch fiasco, Azusa decided to limit her interactions with both Sawamura and Furuya. Not only were they a little too much to handle while they were together, they were also already suspicious of her actions. Despite Sawamura getting the wrong idea and thinking that she was a member of some Miyuki fangirl club (seriously why would he think that?). She knew that sooner or later he would come to the right conclusion.

He couldn't be that stupid.

Or perhaps he could? Regardless, that didn't matter now. She had other matters in mind. Like asking Rei for the Kanto tournament already started and she wanted to analyze all the data so far. Specially from Furuya since he already made his grand debut and caught everyone's attention. Also, she was hoping that she would find another way of being helpful to the team.

Azusa walked towards Rei's office and slowly entered the building with a small knock. She knew that she wasn't going to get a response since her particular office was at the end of the corridor and slowly walked down the hall.

"Why do I have to partner off with Chris-senpai? He doesn't care about baseball since he always leaves practice early!" Azusa heard Sawamura exclaimed.

' _Sawamura didn't I tell you to shut up?'_

THUD!

Azusa heard a loud noise banging against the wall and she quickly went to Rei's office to see what happened. The door was ajar and she gasped at the sight before her eyes.

Miyuki was holding Sawamura against the wall with an expression that she had never seen before. He was angry. Well no. He wasn't angry. He was more than angry. He was furious. His usual brown eyes were now dark and dull with rage. The catcher looked as if he wanted to beat the younger boy up.

"Miyuki-kun!" Rei exclaimed, urging him to leave Sawamura alone.

Miyuki finally let go of Sawamura with disdain. Leaving a poor pitcher confused.

Azusa quickly went further down the hall as soon as she saw Miyuki leaving the office. Luckily for her he didn't turn around so he didn't see her. Even though she would be the last thing on his mind after just happened with Sawamura.

The manager shook her head. She couldn't be thinking about Miyuki at the moment. And went into Rei's office.

"Sawamura-kun what were you thinking?" she exclaimed, barging into the room.

"What's up with everyone today?" Rei asked while adjusting her glasses. She hadn't even bothered in getting up from her chair and crossed her arms across her chest, demanding for an explanation.

"Uhh… My apologies, Takashima-sensei," Azusa said in an unusual polite tone with a small bow. Then she turned to Sawamura. "Didn't I tell you not to say anything bad about Chris-senpai in Miyuki's presence?" she asked the pitcher in exasperation with her hands on her hips.

However, instead of getting a loud or angry reply back. The pitcher didn't answer and just blankly stared into space.

The manager blinked in confusion. "Huh? Sawamura?"

"I guess he's still in shock," Rei said, catching Azusa's attention. "Which I can't really blame him. Neither him or Miyuki-kun."

"Is there a special reason why Miyuki-senpai reacted like that?" Azusa asked.

Rei nodded. "Yes and I think it's about time that I show Sawamura-kun the reason why Miyuki-kun got so angry with him."

Azusa wanted to ask her to get into specifics but there was something about her tone that indicated her that wasn't going to happen. Feeling mildly concerned she looked back at the pitcher who still was in shock.

Hopefully he gets over it soon.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o00o0

A few days had passed since the incident between Sawamura and Miyuki and things had turned into a strange direction. At first, she thought that it would take a while for Sawamura to get over the shock he went through with Miyuki. But she was wrong. After that day he looked completely revitalized. Which is where things got really weird. Sawamura, who refused to be Chris's battery partner since the first moment and refused to follow his instructions, just completely changed his tune. Not only was he doing his training menus as instructed without protesting, but he was actually following Chris around. Well, more like stalking him. He also referred to him in the most respectful way possible and wanted to earn his forgiveness.

Azusa didn't know what caused that change in the pitcher which was driving her crazy. She wanted to know but Sawamura didn't tell her what happened that night where he went out with Rei. She was planning on asking him tonight but she got stuck with organizing the equipment shed at the last minute and it was already nighttime.

She needed to go home soon before it got too late.

' _And I certainly don't want to miss my bus,'_ Azusa thought as she was about to close the door of the equipment shed shut.

"Blondie-chan stop!" she heard Sawamura scream.

Azusa turned around and noticed that he was jogging towards her. He was out of his uniform and now it was a white t-shirt with grey sweatpants on.

Azusa narrowed her eyes at him. "What do you want?" she asked in mild irritation. She was tired and wanted to go home already.

"Don't close the door yet," he pleaded.

"Why the hell not?" Azusa asked with a glare.

"Because I want to run with my tire," the pitcher explained before trying to go inside the shed.

"Absolutely not!" the manager exclaimed, extending her arms so she could stop him. "You're not going to take anything from here! I just spent so much time organizing this and I won't let you mess it up!"

Sawamura grimaced. "Oh c'mon! I need it," he begged. "I promise that I will put it back."

Azusa scoffed. "No, you won't," she said.

"Manager-san!" she heard another masculine voice called out.

Both Azusa and Sawamura turned to see who it was.

"What are you doing here, Furuya?" Sawamura angrily demanded.

Furuya was also jogging towards their direction. He was out of uniform as well and wearing his sweats. Once he catched up with them, he was visibly out of breath and rested his hands on his knees. "Please, manager-san," he began taking gasps of air. "Don't close the shed… I want to use a tire," he managed to said in between breaths.

Azusa shook her head "No!"

Furuya shot up from his position. "What?" he asked in a deflated tone.

"I said that I wasn't going to let you use a tire," she reiterated. "Or you for that matter," she added, turning to the southpaw.

"Why not?" Furuya asked with a pout.

"I told you that I was going to put it back," Sawamura argued.

Azusa put her hands on her hips and glared at the two pitchers. "I won't let you because every time you say that you'll put it back, you don't! In fact, I always see the tires laying around on the field in the mornings when I arrive. And who gets scolded by the _senpai_ ? Me!"

"But that was him not me, manager-san," Furuya said, pointing at Sawamura.

"What? Don't you lie you bastard! You also leave them lying around," the southpaw protested.

Furuya shook his head in denial.

"Both of you do! So don't waste your time, Furuya-kun," Azusa quipped.

"Just let me use one please!" Sawamura asked with a polite quick bow. "Forget about Furuya and just give me my tire. I bet it misses me."

Furuya narrowed his eyes at the shorter pitcher. "Mine misses me more," he said, trying to one up him.

Azusa groaned out in frustration. "Tires don't have feelings, _baka_!"

"My, my, look at what we have here; a couple of loudmouth first-years," a masculine voice interrupted them with a snicker.

Azusa widened her eyes in shock when she looked up and saw who it was. "M-m-m-mi," she stammered while taking in his figure. He was also out of his uniform and wearing a red baseball shirt, black sweatpants, and a green beanie.

Both Furuya and Sawamura turned around and paled when they noticed that a certain catcher had sneaked up on them.

"Miyuki Kazuya!" Sawamura exclaimed.

"What are you doing here, Miyuki-senpai?" Furuya asked.

"Is that a way to greet your _senpai_?" Miyuki asked in a cheeky tone.

Sawamura just stayed quiet instead of replying with his usual curt remarks. It seemed as if Sawamura was still feeling awkward around Miyuki.

Furuya pouted not pleased with his response.

"You two need to stop being so noisy," Miyuki chastised. "And you too, Azu-chan," the catcher added with a cheeky grin. "It seems like you're as loud as ever. No wonder you get along with Sawamura so well!"

Azusa's face heated up in embarrassment but that didn't stop her from scowling at him. "Shut up!" she yelled. "You haven't changed either. You're as insufferable as ever!"

Miyuki mockingly covered his ears. "See? This is what I'm talking about," he said in an innocent tone.

Azusa clenched her fists in anger and growled at him."You know what?" she asked in the calmest tone she could muster. "I was wrong. You've changed. I see that you're not a short little kid anymore," she spat.

Miyuki's eye twitched a little at her comment but she didn't wipe his smirk off his face. "I was not a short little kid you were just an abnormally tall little girl," he retorted.

"What did you just say?!"

"And you were just an inch taller than me so cool it," Miyuki added.

" _Ano_ …" Furuya awkwardly interrupted them.

Miyuki raised an eyebrow in inquiry.

"Do you two know each other?" Sawamura asked in confusion.

The southpaw was also feeling awkward just like Furuya since they were literally between Miyuki and Azusa right in the middle.

Azusa gasped, realizing that they had an audience.

"Actually," Miyuki began.

"No!" Azusa interrupted him before he could finish his sentence. "I don't know him and I don't want to be in his presence or yours for that matter, so good night!" she exclaimed before running off, going past both pitchers and Miyuki. Leaving a confused trio behind.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

As soon as Azusa left the three boys, she rushed to her locker and retrieved her bag. She wanted to leave Seido as soon as possible. How could've she been so stupid? So careless? First, she was stupid enough to let her guard down and not notice when Miyuki approached them. Second, she was stupid enough to get riled up by the catcher so easily. How could've she exposed herself like that in front of Sawamura and Furuya? The two pitchers were polar opposites, but they did share some similarities. One of them being that despite being so dumb, there was no way in hell that they didn't figure out that her and Miyuki know each other very well.

' _Or maybe they are?'_ Azusa hopelessly pondered while she approached the school's exit.

At least she had until tomorrow to figure things out and talk to Miyuki.

" _Oi!_ Stop spacing out and hurry!" Miyuki's voice made her jump out of her thoughts.

"M-Miyuki?" Azusa stammered, feeling confused. She looked to both to her right and left side only to be met with the concrete ground and trees sparsely spread out throughout the campus. Then she looked right ahead and gasped in surprise.

It was the one and only Miyuki Kazuya who was leaning against the wall of Seido's entrance.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"What does it look like?" he replied with a question of his own. "I'm here to walk you to the bus station."

Azusa gave him a quizzical look. "But why?"

Miyuki smirked at her. "Because a gentleman never lets a lady walk by herself late at night."

The manager snorted at his comment. "That may be true but I don't see a gentleman around here," she quipped. "So I still don't see the point in you being here."

Miyuki dramatically put his hand on his chest. "You wound me, Azu-chan."

Azusa rolled her eyes. "As if."

The catcher chuckled, amused with her reactions. "Joking aside," he began in a rather serious tone. "It is getting late and dark as well, so let's get going," Miyuki said in a firm tone, not allowing room for disagreement.

Azusa opened her mouth to protest but then decided against it when she spared a glance towards the evening sky. Miyuki was right. The dry summer night was dark and despite being a full moon, the clouds shrouded it along with the few stars that were visible in the Tokyo sky. It was better to go without putting up a fight.

"Fine," she said admitting defeat. However, deep down inside Azusa felt relieved because she didn't like walking to the bus stop by herself. It was very scary for her.

Miyuki took a step forward and started walking ahead of her at a slow pace so she could catch up with him rather quickly. As they were walking through the dimly lit streets, they fell into an uncomfortable/comfortable silence as weird as it sounded. It was comfortable because it reminded her of the times where she used to walk home with Miyuki, in silence, just like this. Which didn't bother her at all because she didn't need to talk to him in order for her to enjoy his company. But tonight it was also uncomfortable because this was the first time they had seen each other since he graduated junior high. Not to mention that they had been attending the same school for over a month now and she didn't even bother with talking to him.

Was he mad at her?

Was he hurt because she ignored him?

When did he find out that she was attending Seido?

So many questions and not enough answers. Well, she didn't even had answers.

What's a girl to do?

Azusa tentatively glanced towards Miyuki with the corner of her eye. He didn't look particular angry. He had a neutral expression. But that didn't tell her anything since Miyuki was good with masking his emotions. Despite her anxiety, she couldn't help but to check him out. He indeed was taller now compared to how he used to be. Now he was over a little three inches taller than her. Miyuki was more handsome with more defined cheekbones and sharp jawline, losing all the baby fat from junior high. His body looks more strong and toned. She peeked at his forearms to marvel over the definition of his muscles. He also smelled very good. Like-

"Why are you so quiet?" Miyuki suddenly asked, interrupting Azusa's musings about him.

Azusa slightly flinched at his question but did her best to recover quickly. "N-nothing," she said. "I'm just thinking."

"Don't strain yourself with too much thinking," he teased.

"Shut up!"

Miyuki burst out laughing. "I forgot how fun it was to tease you."

"And I forgot how annoying you were," she shot back with a glare.

"Now, now. Don't get mad," he tried to appease her in a mocking tone.

Azusa elbowed him. "You know that I don't like people telling me what to do."

"You're right," Miyuki said, nodding. "I also know that you want to ask me something," he added. "So why don't you just go ahead and ask?" the catcher proposed, turning to her.

The manager averted her gaze feeling mildly embarrassed. How did he know her so well?

"So?" he pushed.

Azusa turned to Miyuki, locking her azure eyes with his brown caramel ones. "Since when do you know that I've been attending Seido?" she finally asked.

"Since the first day of practice," Miyuki simply replied.

"What? The first day?" Azusa exclaimed in shock. "But how?"

"What do you mean how?" he asked while trying not to laugh. "It was so obvious. We only have five managers and you guys are around all the time."

"But no one pays attention to the managers!" Azusa argued.

"Just because we don't talk to you guys a lot doesn't mean that we're blind," Miyuki pointed out in amusement.

Azusa pouted. "I was hiding from you too," she continued.

Miyuki snickered. "I know," he said. "Which made it even funnier."

Azusa continued with her pouting. "You're mean."

"Not to mention how funny it was to watch Sawamura chasing you while screaming 'blondie-chan,'" the catcher kept going.

Azusa groaned. "Don't remind me," she said. "Unfortunately, that nickname has stuck."

"It seems like you two get along well."

"What about you guys?" she asked instead.

Miyuki blinked. "What about us?"

Azusa narrowed her eyes at him in suspicion. She knew him well enough to know that he was playing dumb. "Are you getting along with him?"

Miyuki shrugged. "I guess so," he vaguely replied.

Azusa made a noncommittal sound. "Sawamura-kun is afraid of you, y'know?"

The catcher snickered. "Is that so?"

"Yeah, it seems like you did something to scare him," she said nonchalantly with a knowing smile.

Miyuki returned the smile without saying anything.

"Just so you know he is very sorry and now practically worships the ground that Chris-senpai walks on," she continued.

"That's nice to know," Miyuki said. "He doesn't need to be scared of me since I'm not mad at him or anything like that."

"That's nice to know too," Azusa replied.

"You know what would also be nice to know?" he asked.

"What?"

"Why did you come to Seido?" Miyuki asked, catching Azusa off-guard. "Mei must be furious."

Azusa scoffed. "I don't care about how Mei feels."

"I don't blame you but that still doesn't answer my question," the catcher pointed out while keeping his eyes straight ahead. He noticed that the bus stop was coming into view.

Azusa let out a loud sigh. "Mei might be my brother but that doesn't mean that it's not excruciating to be with him. He is too high maintenance," she said. "I'm just tired of always being with him and having everything to be about Mei. I wanted some space away from him to focus on me for a change."

Miyuki nodded. "Understandable."

"Thank you!" she said, feeling relieved that someone at least understood her. "At least you get it. Unlike Mei, who keeps on bothering me."

"Don't worry, he'll eventually come around," Miyuki said in a hopeful tone.

Azusa stared into his eyes again and gave him a small smile. "Kazuya?" she asked, finding herself using his first name like when she used to in the past.

He stared right back at her. "Yes?"

"I also came because-"

"Your bus is here," Miyuki cut her off and motioned to the bus who was approaching down the street.

Azusa turned around, feeling half relieved and half annoyed.

She was just getting to enjoy spending time talking to Miyuki.

"I have to go now," she said, turning to the catcher. "Thanks!" she added while turning back and walk towards the bus.

Miyuki merely waved back at her and stayed until she got on the bus and departed the station.

As soon as the bus disappeared from his view, the catcher pulled his phone from his pocket and started to type down a message.

 _From: Miyuki Kazuya_

 _To: Narumiya Mei_

' _Everything is fine.'_


	4. Everything Falling Into Place

**Hello there! Happy fall! I hope you are doing well and that you enjoyed your summer!  
**

 **I apologize for not updating any sooner. I had my two bottom wisdom teeth removed during the last week of August and I've just recovered from the swelling and the pain. I know ideally it would've been better to get rid of all of them at once but I didn't want to overestimate my pain tolerance :P**

 **Hopefully there were lots of happy campers last chapter when I finally introduced Miyuki and had interact with Azusa lol**

 **Lady Syndra you're on the right track. Azusa does have a lot of insecurities and she is running away from them. That is something she will have to come to terms throughout the fic. Also thank you for leaving a review!**

 **I want to thank everyone who has favorited/followed/left kudos or reviews/comments as well.**

 **Thank you for your support.**

 **I apologize for any grammar mistakes.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Daiya No Ace, Yuji Terajima does. I only own my OC.**

 **Enjoy!**

Chapter four: Everything Coming Into Place

' _Everything is fine,'_ Miyuki typed out on his flip phone and sent the text to Narumiya Mei as he smirked to himself.

"Who would've thought that Narumiya Mei was actually a decent older brother?" the catcher mused to himself out loud.

" _What the hell took you so long, Kazuya?" an angry Mei screamed at Miyuki from the other side of a phone line._

" _It's three in the morning, Mei," Miyuki whispered into his cellphone while quietly stepping out of his dorm room. He didn't want to wake up his roommate because of a certain bratty pitcher._

" _What's your point?" Mei asked perplexed._

" _Some of us sleep," Miyuki deadpanned while tiredly rubbing his eyes. "Which I'm surprised you're not doing since you always go on about how important is for you to have your beauty sleep," he teased._

 _Mei snorted. "I can afford to miss out on one or two unlike others," he teased back._

 _Miyuki ignored his jab. "What do you want, Narumiya?" he asked in a curt tone, changing the subject. He was getting exasperated with the pitcher. Mei was not an easy person to handle, especially not at three in the morning. Miyuki desperately wanted to sleep since he couldn't afford to oversleep and arrive late to practice again. Besides, if someone managed to see him in this state of disarray; with his his black sleeping mask on top of his head and his hair sticking out in every single direction. The entire team would have a picnic at his expense._

 _Miyuki heard Mei loudly exhaled a frustrated sigh. "Azusa is at Seido," he said in a low tone._

" _Ah yes, I saw her this morning," Miyuki said nonchalantly. "She is one of the new managers."_

" _And you're just saying it so casually?" Mei asked annoyed. "Why didn't you tell me?"_

" _Don't you guys live together and are like- I don't know- actual siblings?" the catcher retorted._

" _We are," Mei grumbled. "But she didn't tell me."_

" _I can't possibly think of any reason why she decided not to tell you," Miyuki replied, sarcasm dripping from his tone._

" _Shut up you bastard," Mei half-heartedly chastised him. "I didn't call for you this."_

" _Then why did you call me for?" Miyuki asked. "Don't tell me you want me to convince her to leave Seido?"_

" _No, of course not," Mei scoffed. "I just…," he trailed off. "Just… Just take care of her, alright?" the pitcher asked in an uncharacteristically soft and pleading tone._

 _Miyuki widened his eyes in surprise. Not only was he surprised by Mei's tone but also at his request. Mei was not the type to ask for help. "What? Are you serious, Mei? You seriously want me to take care of your sister?"_

" _Who else?" Mei argued. "Besides, I… Trust you," he revealed._

 _The catcher raised an eyebrow in inquiry. "Really?"_

" _For the most part," Mei conceded in a sheepish tone. "And I know that she trusts you. It's always been the two of us since our sisters are so much older than us. And then in junior high we met you and it was always the three of us after that. So now that you two are in the same school and I'm here at Inashiro. You're the only one I can trust with this task," Mei explained._

 _Miyuki softly smiled to himself, finding himself unable to bring up any teasing or sarcastic remark. How could he do that when Mei was being so honest with him?_

" _Mei?"_

" _Yes?"_

" _Don't worry," Miyuki said in a reassuring tone. "I'll take care of her."_

" _Thanks, Kazuya," he said in a sincere tone. "That was all, so I'll let you sleep now."_

" _Mei wait!" Miyuki said._

" _What?" Mei asked in a confused tone._

" _Don't take it personally," Miyuki said vaguely._

 _Mei stayed silent on the line. His low breathing was the only audible sound. To anyone else, it might've looked as if he was confused or didn't know what Miyuki was talking about. But Miyuki knew better._

 _That's just how their friendship was._

 _They didn't need many words to understand each other._

" _Good night, Kazuya," Mei finally said before ending the call._

" _Good night, Mei," Miyuki said fully knowing that Mei was not going to hear him._

Despite how Mei (rudely) woke him up in the wee hours of the morning and caught him off guard that night with his request. He was happy that Mei was comfortable enough to ask him that. Even though they still joked around and teased each other every time they saw each other, there was an underlying tension. Miyuki still felt some kind of awkwardness between them ever since he rejected Mei's offer of joining Inashiro. Mei was the first friend he ever made. While his teammates bullied him and ostracized him, Mei was the first one to approach him and talk to him as if it was as natural as breathing. Just for that, Mei would always hold a very special place in Miyuki's life and therefore he didn't want them to be truly at odds. Mei's call just reassured him that he was probably overthinking the state of their friendship for the past couple of months.

So that's one less worry.

However, there was Azusa on the other hand.

While there was no awkward tension between him and Azusa, Miyuki wasn't sure how she felt about him. Just like Mei, Azusa was very surprised when Miyuki chose to go to Seido instead of Inashiro. He sometimes wondered whether the newly turned manager ever felt some kind of animosity towards him for not choosing Inashiro, Mei, and ultimately them. Azusa never said anything about it and had yet to complain unlike Mei.

' _And she also came to Seido, so she can't be really mad, can't she?'_ the catcher thought as he made his way back to the campus.

'Surprised' doesn't even begin to describe how Miyuki reacted when he first saw Azusa during the first morning practice. Mei didn't say anything about her going to a different school from him, and she certainly didn't tell him beforehand. It was obvious that she tried to keep it a secret. But failed miserably at it considering how obvious she was trying to hide behind other managers or walk around in the opposite direction. At first, he considered confronting her after the practice was over, but decided against it.

He was having too much fun watching her fret every time Sawamura screamed her name.

Besides, he thought that it would be best to let her come to him when she was ready. He knew that she had her reasons. However, Mei sped up the process because he kept harassing him; asking him, or more like demanding answers about the wellbeing of his sister, since she was not answering the texts of her dear brother. Not like Miyuki could blame her.

The catcher was slightly nervous when he first talked to her but didn't let it show. He would add that he did a convincing job considering that she was the one being awkward around him at first. But soon after they went back to normal and acted as they always did. Miyuki didn't realize how much he missed her until they started walking to the bus station together. Just like Mei, Azusa became an important person in his life and he would always protect her even if Mei doesn't ask him to.

Azusa was like his little sister and he was glad that she was at Seido with him.

It was nice having a familiar face in Seido from his past and he just knew that the rest of his high school years were going to be the farthest thing from boring.

He always had fun with Azusa and this time wouldn't be any different.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Many things have changed in the last couple of days since Miyuki came up to Azusa. Sawamura's abilities were improving just like his relationship with Chris. The older catcher's eyes looked more alive since Sawamura apologized and started listening to him. He had a different air around him and with time Azusa could see why Miyuki admired Chris so much. It was not until she watched the second string practice game where Sawamura and Chris formed a battery for the first time that she truly understood Miyuki's admiration. Chris was an excellent player. He had a good presence on the field, and his game-calling was even more impressive. Nothing bad should've come out of the game. But it did.

After that game the coach decided which two players were going to be promoted to the first string. Bringing a palpable tension in the atmosphere. Everyone thought that Chris was going to be chosen after he showed how well he played in that practice game, including Sawamura himself. But the coach chose Kominato Haruichi and Sawamura instead. Leaving Chris behind in the third string.

Chris was very gracious and understanding while Sawamura….

" _Ne_ , Sawamura where are you going?" Azusa asked in confusion. Practice had just ended and the pitcher just took two tires with him.

Sawamura stopped and turn around to face her."To run," he replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Huh?" the manager exclaimed in mild shock. "But you ran earlier and practice just ended. You need a break since it's late," she said, pointing to the sun that was about set.

Ever since he got in the first string, Sawamura had been practicing more than usual and pushing himself tremendously.

The southpaw shook his head. "There are no times for break!" he exclaimed. "If I don't push myself then I won't improve!" Sawamura explained. "Don't worry blondie-chan, I will give you back the tires before you leave!" he shouted before taking off.

" _Baka!_ I don't care about the tires!" Azusa yelled as he was running off but he didn't turn back.

' _I care about you overworking yourself to death,'_ she wanted to say but decided not to.

"Don't come to me when you pass out from exhaustion!" she yelled angrily instead. Sawamura was so damn stubborn and he didn't want to listen no matter how many times her, Miyuki, or Kuramochi told him to take it easy.

"Why do you always have to be so damn loud?" a masculine voice asked.

"Who the hell is asking?" Azusa asked annoyed. She turned around and widened her azure eyes in surprise when she noticed who it was.

It was Isashiki Jun and behind him were the older players: Kominato Ryousuke, Kuramochi Youichi, Yuki Tetsuya, and Masuko Toru.

An irritated Isashiki Jun was glaring her down. "Me! You got a problem with that?" he asked in the most intimidating tone he could muster.

Azusa just scoffed and put her arms on her hips, glaring back at him. She was not intimidated by his height nor by his scary expression. "Yes, I do, since that would mean that you're nothing but a big fat LOUD hypocrite!"

"What did you just say?!"

"So aside from being loud she is disrespectful as well," another voice chimed in. Soon the older Kominato brother, Kominato Ryousuke stepped in. "Not to mention that you don't make any sense."

Azusa turned to him; forgetting about Jun all of a sudden. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"How is Sawamura supposed to go to you when he passes out?" he asked. "If he passes out then he'll be unable to walk because he'll be unconscious," the pink-haired boy pointed out in a mocking tone.

Kuramochi started laughing at Azusa."Hyahaha, don't mock her like that Ryou-san," he said while holding his stomach from laughing too hard.

The manager grumbled at their digs. "Stop being such a smart-ass shorty!" Azusa fought back with a glare as she tried to impose her height on him.

Kuramochi immediately stopped laughing as a shocked expression graced his features. "Hey, that was not smart," he began in a rather serious tone.

Azusa scoffed. "What?"

"Did she just….?" Tetsu trailed off.

"Say that?" Masuko finished for his captain with a terrified expression.

"You gotta have a death wish!" Jun exclaimed.

"Why are you guys acting like that?" Azusa asked, looking at her _senpai_. "You look like as if you just saw a ghost."

"It's worse than that," Tetsu said in a cryptic tone.

The manager cocked her head to the side. "Huh?"

"Apologize right now!" Kuramochi insisted.

Azusa snorted as she put her hands on her hips and rolled her eyes. "No."

"You really wanna die," Jun continued.

"Repeat that again," Ryousuke said in an almost inaudible tone, scaring all of his fellow players.

Azusa turned to him. "What?" she asked in a smug tone while glaring at him.

"What did you just say?" Ryousuke asked again in an eerily calm tone while staring back at Azusa.

The manager felt a chill run down her spine as she made eye contact with Ryousuke. There was something in his voice that indicated her that she just messed up big time. "I… I…" Azusa stammered as she felt that she was gradually stopping glaring at him. She didn't know what overcame her but suddenly a feeling of dread and fear enveloped her entire body like a cloak as she was staring at him.

He was definitely scary.

"You what?" he pressed.

Azusa gulped a thick lump down her throat nervously. "N-n-nothing, I just want to apologize for being rude Kominato-senpai!" she said in a sincere tone and respectfully bowed to him.

Ryousuke smirked. "That's what I thought."

All the players burst out laughing.

"You were all bark and no fight since you folded pretty quick, hyahaha," Kuramochi teased.

Tetsu nodded in approval. "You did the right thing," he said. "Sometimes you have to stop being stubborn for your own good."

"Uga!" Masuko exclaimed.

"That will teach you to be respectful to your elders," Jun said, gloating. "So what about me now?"

Azusa straightened up her back and glanced at him. "What about you?" she asked.

Jun glared at her again as he growled in anger. "That I deserve some respect as your _senpai_!"

Azusa snorted in the most unlady like fashion. "As if," she said before turning around to resume her managerial duties. Leaving a furious spitz behind.

"You come back here!"

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

The summer camp of hell was in full swing and with each passing day Azusa thought that she was closer to death. Some might think that it was silly that she was complaining about hard it was considering that she wasn't even a player. But things were really tough for her and her fellow managers. Everything was more intense than the usual practices. Longer hours of practice meant that the players needed double or triple the equipment that they usually used. Which meant that the managers needed to work harder to get them ready. Not to mention all the time that they had to spend under the scorching hot sun looking for the baseballs dispersed throughout the practice fields. Since the players were working harder, it meant that they needed more sustenance and they needed to cook more to Azusa's dismay since cooking was not her strong suit.

Azusa felt as if she was barely making it. She was feeling pathetic and weak. She came to Seido because she wanted to make a difference and help the team win the tournament and go to Koshien. But she couldn't even do that. Now, the only thing she looks forward to is to her dorm room. At least the managers got rooms to stay during hell week, so she didn't need to worry about going home late at night. But she hated the fact that was the only thing she liked since she had bigger plans in mind. She had tried to help with the pitchers since she had experience with that but both Sawamura and Furuya refused to listen to her. Not to mention that she barely had the time for that. Azusa was at a loss. She didn't know what to do.

She felt useless but at least with each passing day she was not feeling as out of place as she was feeling before. She was finally beginning to feel as if she belongs at Seido. She had fights with Sawamura and Furuya all the time but that was part of their friendship and she wouldn't want it any other way. She was still going strong with Haruno. She also stopped talking back to her _senpai._ Well, at least most of the time. Azusa stopped that habit with the older managers, but she couldn't help herself around Jun. He was a loudmouth just like her and he always knew how to annoy her. So she just _had_ to annoy him right back. She would joke around with Kuramochi as well. However, she was very careful with her words around Ryousuke. He was so scary, that he sent shivers down her spine so she decided not to mess with him. Who would've thought that the short baseball player would be so scary?

' _I hope that I don't have to give him any snacks,'_ Azusa thought with a shudder as she placed one rice ball on the long metal rectangular tray. The managers were in the kitchen, preparing refreshments for the team.

"Azusa-chan! Snap out of it and help with the trays!" Sachiko yelled as she picked up a basket of water bottles. "The team's break is coming up soon!"

" _H-hai!"_ Azusa said with a nod as she did as she was told. She couldn't even muster the energy of rolling her eyes at Sachiko or grumble like she would usually do. It was too hot for that.

Besides, she had other (better) things to look forward to. Like giving Miyuki her own rice balls that she made herself specifically for him. While she was not the best cook, she had been practicing ever since he graduated from junior high so he could finally enjoy her cooking.

Hopefully the catcher would find it to his liking!

Azusa followed Sachiko and Yui while Haruno and Takako were behind her on their way to the field. Not only were they carrying water bottles and rice balls but also bananas and other types of fruits. At least the sun was going down along with the heat so the players were going to enjoy the refreshments more.

All the players perked up when they saw them; desperately wanting everything that they had to offer them. Azusa let Sachiko and Yui distribute the water bottles while Haruno and Takako were giving out the fruits. Mainly because she was hiding from a certain pink-haired _senpai_ (but she wasn't going to admit that out loud).

Suddenly Sawamura came up to her along with the younger Kominato. "What do you have there, blondie-chan?" Sawamura asked in an excited tone despite of his fatigued appearance.

"Don't call me that," Azusa half-chastised in amusement as she noticed his usual bright expression. He was done with pushing himself and it seemed as if he was back to being the old Sawamura. "And they are _onigiri_ ," she replied, extending the tray to the boys.

"You made them yourself, Narumiya-san?" Kominato asked while taking one rice ball from the tray.

"Well, Haruno-chan made the one that you just took," Azusa said to him while he took one bite. "I made the last couple," she continued. "Take one, Sawamura. You don't want to pass out," the manager offered.

"Thank you!" Sawamura said with a nod as he took one as well.

Azusa shot him a small smile and then looked around as if she felt something was amiss.

"Where is Furuya-kun?" she suddenly asked.

"Furuya-kun actually passed out," Kominato replied while he pointed out at the taller boy who was sprawled on the ground.

"Furuya-kun! You can't actually be this weak!" Azusa chided while she stifled her laughter. He really did had low stamina.

"Leave him there blondie-chan," the southpaw said with a gleeful smile as he wolfed down another rice ball. "I just can't believe that there is this much food!" he exclaimed as he sat down on the ground.

"Sawamura, be careful," she tried to warn.

"Don't worry, Sawamura!" Kuramochi suddenly chimed in. He walked into their circle along with Miyuki who had a water bottle in his hand and was wearing his cap sideways as usual. "Eat as much as you want!" the shortstop encouraged.

Azusa looked at them with a concerned expression. Sawamura shouldn't really eat too much because then he would throw it up when practice resumed. "But-"

"Nothing," Kuramochi cut her off while making a silent plea of silence with his eyes.

Azusa shot him a weird look but then she smiled in understanding. He wanted to play a trick on the first-years by having them eat as much as they could to get them sick and throw up. Kuramochi was indeed evil. No wonder he got along with Ryousuke so well.

"So you made those _onigiri_ ?" Miyuki suddenly asked her.

Azusa turned to the catcher almost immediately. "Y-yes," she replied with a blush. "Well, along with Haruno-chan," she corrected herself. "Do you want to try them?" Azusa offered in a hopeful tone.

Miyuki carefully inspected the rice balls on her tray with a thoughtful expression before turning to her. "Give me one that Yoshikawa-san made," he finally said.

Azusa gasped. "B-but why one of her's?" she asked, trying to keep her cool. "Don't you want to try one of mine?"

"Absolutely not," Miyuki deadpanned.

The manager's heart sank. "Why not?" she asked looking down at the tray. "Mine look exactly the same as hers," she added while pointing at them. They all looked the same with their round shapes.

Miyuki snorted. "Because you're a terrible cook," the catcher said in a matter of a fact tone. "Do you think that I have a death wish?" he added while snickering.

Azusa glared at him as she gritted her teeth in anger.

"They taste fine to me," Sawamura interrupted while stuffing his face with another onigiri. He had one in each hand and was happily eating them at the same time.

Miyuki burst out laughing. "Then you have terrible taste Bakamura."

That's when Azusa lost it.

"You're such a jerk, Miyuki Kazuya!" she yelled, her face red with anger.

"Thank you!"

"That's not a compliment!" she quickly retorted. Then she took one rice ball and push it against his face. "You're going to eat this now, you jerk!"

"I don't want it!" Miyuki exclaimed with a mild terrified expression as he tried to get away from her.

"Eat it!"

"No!"

"Eat it!"

"No!"

"Why not?"

"I don't want it!"

"Azusa-chan!" Sachiko suddenly yelled from the other side of the crowd, interrupting the fight between the manager and the catcher.

Azusa slowly turned to the older manager as she was trembling. "Y-yes?" she asked as she nervously gulped a thick lump down her throat. Knowing exactly what was waiting for her.

Silence sunk in as everyone turned to the two managers.

"What the hell are you doing playing with the snacks like that?" Sachiko scolded. "Get away from Miyuki-kun and come over here! You're on clean-up duty!"

Azusa suppressed the urge to roll her eyes and just lowered her head in apology. " _Hai_ , Sachiko-senpai," she said as the entire team burst out laughing.

She could particularly hear the third years such as Jun and Ryousuke saying something about "unruly _kouhai."_

Azusa internally growled as anger and frustration boiled inside her.

This was all his fault.

' _Damn that Miyuki Kazuya!'_

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Thankfully for Azusa, the weekend marked the end of the summer camp from hell. Today's game against Kiryu was more than enough for her. It was too emotionally draining since a lot of things happened. Furuya delivered a terrible performance at the beginning of the game and only found his rhythm for a short period of time before the coach called the change. Sawamura did much better considering that he conceded less runs, but he only could pitch to the inside corner once, which was not a good thing at all. Specially with the summer tournament coming up. Then Miyuki showed her that he still can't get a hit without runners on base which Azusa thought it was hilarious. She thought that was going to be a thing of the past and that he would improve as a batter, but not even Miyuki Kazuya was perfect.

As exhilarating as that match was, Azusa wouldn't mind if the final games that were going to take place tomorrow turned out to be more mellow. It would be against Shuhoku High School and….

"Oh no," Azusa groaned out when she remembered the name of the other team who was going to come tomorrow.

Inashiro Vocational High School.

"Why? Why? Why?" she asked as she stopped walking towards her dorm and looked at the night sky for answers.

Azusa was definitely not ready to see Mei tomorrow. First, because she had been ignoring his incessant texts and calls. Second, he was going to be obnoxious as soon as he saw her. But most importantly because she just knew that he was going to blow up her cover and tell everyone that they were siblings. Mei didn't know how to be discreet even if his life depended on it. She could text him and tell him that she didn't want him to make a scene, but that would only make him more eager to embarrass her. So she decided against it. She just hoped that she could avoid Mei all day tomorrow. Perhaps, she could stay indoors throughout the games, so he wouldn't be able to see her.

Yes, that sounded like a good idea.

" _Kami-sama_ please help me," she said with a quick prayer.

Then she heard someone snickering behind her. "Since when are you religious?" a masculine voice asked.

Azusa turned around and gasped in surprise. "Kazuya?" she asked. "W-what are you doing here?" she said as she scanned his appearance. He was wearing a green beanie hat, his beloved red baseball shirt, and grey sweatpants, and white sneakers. He was also carrying a bat which meant that he was practicing. "Extra practice?"

"Practice makes perfect," the catcher replied with a small smirk.

"Well, you definitely need it," Azusa quipped with a teasing smile.

Miyuki's smirk didn't falter. "At least my batting is better than your cooking," he teased back.

Azusa scowled at him. "How would know you if you didn't even try it?" she asked, feeling her anger rise within her as she remembered the other day when he refused to eat her rice balls.

"Because the taste of your food will forever be engraved in my tastebuds," he said dramatically.

"I've improved since then!"

"I rather not risk it," Miyuki said jokingly. "Specially since the summer tournament is coming up."

Azusa rolled her eyes before pouting. "You're so rude."

Miyuki chuckled. "Don't tell me that's why you're in a bad mood."

Azusa was going to retort with a smart comment but she stopped as soon as she stared into his brown eyes. Was he concerned about her? 

She decided to play coy. "That among other things."

"Like Mei?" he asked with a knowing smile.

Azusa averted her gaze from him. "Yes," she said with a nod. "I just don't know what he's going to do tomorrow."

"Yes, Mei is very unpredictable," he said. "But he's not that bad. He wouldn't purposely hurt you."

"Are you defending Mei?" Azusa asked in an incredulous tone.

"I'm stating facts which is quite different," he corrected as he started walking ahead.

Azusa followed him with a grin adorning her face. "Sounds like the same to me," she teased. "But you're right. He's not that bad. Just overwhelming at times," she conceded. "I'm probably just overthinking it."

"You always overthink things," Miyuki said. "Which is why I tell you not think at all," he teased back.

The manager narrowed her eyes in a glare at him. "Shut up Miyuki Kazuya!"

Her outburst just made Miyuki laugh. "Now you sound just like Sawamura."

Azusa growled at him as she clenched her fists in anger. "I mean it! Shut up!" she yelled. "I'm too tired to deal with you right now," she grumbled.

Miyuki spared a glance at her while chuckling for the last time. "Fine, I'll stop," he said. "Only because this was your first hell week and I know how grueling it can be."

"Tell me about it," she said while tiredly rubbing her temples. "I feel so tired even though I was pretty much useless since I was struggling to keep up for the entire week."

"Just because I refused to eat your food, doesn't mean that you were useless," the catcher began with no trace of humor in his tone while turning to him. "I saw you and the rest of the managers work very hard every day to support us. So don't ever say that you're useless ever again, understood?" he asked, his brown eyes deeply staring into her blue ones.

Azusa felt heat rise to her cheeks as she stared back at Miyuki and gave him a sheepish nod. Miyuki's deep gaze rendering her speechless. She didn't know why but his gaze always had that effect on her. There was something deep and powerful that pulled her towards him. Her heart started beating fast in her chest when she realized how close they were to each other. His breath mingling in the air along with her own.

What was happening?

Miyuki gave her a confused look. "Azu-chan are you okay?" he asked while raising a perfectly arched eyebrow in inquiry.

"Y-yes, I'm fine," she replied while averting her gaze from him. She was blushing again which made her feel stupid for having that reaction. Azusa quickly looked up in a vain effort to calm down. As soon as she was going to look down, her eye caught something.

The sky.

It was a beautiful night with the full moon and the star adorning the sky. It was not often that the sky was illuminated as it was in the moment due to the street lights and pollution. When was the last time that she stopped and admired the night sky? She was always too preoccupied with too many things at once.

"It's a beautiful night, isn't it?" Miyuki asked, interrupting her thoughts.

Azusa looked down to glance at him and noticed that he was also looking up. "It is," she said, forgetting about her previous concerns.

"We're always so worried about our lives that we don't even notice the marvelous nature that surrounds us," he mused to himself.

Azusa's lips curved into a soft smile. "Funny, I was just thinking that too," she said while turning back to the night sky once again.

They fell into a comfortable silence as they both admired the stars. A familiar scene that brought both comfort and happiness to Azusa since it reminded her of when they were younger. Sometimes they used to hang out by the lake and look at the sun go down and admire how the sky changed colors until nighttime began.

"Azu-chan?"

"Yes?"

"Maybe next time I'll eat one of your _onigiri_ ," Miyuki said without turning to her, his eyes were still fixated on the sky above.

However, Azusa turned to him in shock but moments later grinned at him.

"I'll hold you to that."


	5. Maybe Not Just Yet

**Hello there! I hope y'all doing well! Happy Halloween! Happy Thanksgiving! Happy Hanukkah! I can't believe it's been that long! I apologize for the small hiatus. It's just that I was having inspiration block. I knew what I wanted to write but my mind wasn't in the writing mood despite having small windows of time on some weekends for me to write. But thankfully right after I had my thanksgiving dinner, I opened my laptop, and I got my "writing mood" back. A true thanksgiving miracle lol.**

 **I also hope that you enjoyed last chapter from a while back.**

 **I enjoyed writing it so much. I think the scene with Miyuki and Mei is one of my favorite scenes that I've ever written so I hope you liked it.**

 **Also, I hope you are liking Miyuki's interactions with Azusa. This is supposed to be a slow burn/pining fic, so nothing major will happen anytime soon.**

 **Miyuki only sees Azusa as a little sister… Or so he thinks lol.**

 **Thanks for your support.**

 **I apologize for any grammar mistakes.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Daiya No Ace. Yuji Terajima does. I only own this OC.**

 **Enjoy!  
**

Chapter 5: Maybe Not Just Yet

"Not again!" Azusa groaned out in frustration.

The manager crouched down on the ground as she started to pick up the baseballs that she dropped from the basket.

"Are you alright, Azusa-san?" Haruno asked turning around.

"Yes, yes, I'm fine," Azusa said without looking up to Haruno. She was too preoccupied with her task at hand.

"This is not the first time that you've dropped something today," Haruno said, glancing at her with concern. "You seem very nervous today, is there something wrong?"

Azusa gave her a nervous chuckle in response while getting up with her basket. "Of course I'm fine, why wouldn't I be?" she asked in turn with another awkward laugh.

Haruno narrowed her eyes at Azusa, giving her an unconvinced expression. "If you want, I can take that to the shed since you seem so jittery," she offered.

"I'm not jittery!" Azusa protested. "I'm going to the shed real quick and then I'll grab you so we can watch the games together."

"Alright then," Haruno gave her a slow nod."Don't take too long. Remember that Inashiro is playing in the three way robin today," she reminded Azusa.

"Oh, I know," Azusa deadpanned while having a forced smile plastered on her face.

Then she parted ways with Haruno to go towards the shed.

' _How could I forget?_ ' Azusa thought bitterly to herself.

It was all she could think about as soon as she got in bed last night and not to mention this morning. Not even spending time with Miyuki last night calm her nerves. Haruno was right. She was jittery. She couldn't stop shaking and was very distracted which greatly annoyed her senpai because of how many times they had to repeat themselves. She was so nervous that she hadn't made any complaints all day long. And she always complains. Always.

But today she was having more important issues than being uncomfortable in the hot summer weather, Sachiko being too bossy, or Sawamura being annoying.

Mei was going to be at Seido any moment now and she had no idea how he was going to act.

Was he going to shout her name for the entire team to hear while looking for her?

Was he going to try to convince her to leave Seido?

Tell everyone that they were siblings?

She was screwed. Some people would say she was exaggerating but in her opinion her fears were well justified. She was the sister of the ace of Seido's top rival team that had been preventing them from going to Koshien. How can she expect people to react kindly to that? The sports world was already competitive as it was.

' _I just have to hide until he leaves,'_ Azusa thought to herself. _'If he doesn't see me then he won't embarrass me. The most he can do is to ask Miyuki about me, and I doubt he'll sell me out in this situation.'_

' _Sounds like a plan!'_

"Furuya is not throwing today?" Azusa overheard an overly familiar masculine voice complain.

Oh no…

Azusa froze.

Mei was here.

"Have you two heard of Seido's other amazing pitcher?" Azusa then heard Sawamura's voice.

' _Oh great! And he is talking to Mei too?'_ Azusa pondered as walked discreetly towards the dugout so she could hide behind it and listen to their conversation.

"Yesterday we had a game against Osaka Kiryu and Furuya pitched in the game but the result was horrible!" Sawamura exclaimed.

' _What was that idiot doing? He's not only revealing the team's secrets with Mei but also with his senpai Harada-san. BAKA!'_ Azusa thought angrily.

"He lost eleven runs ins five innings! Five innings!"

' _Someone stop him!'_

"You're lying," Mei said in disbelief while shaking his head.

"It's the truth!" Sawamura insisted. "And when everyone thought everything was over, a hero..."

"That's enough!" Azusa yelled without realizing that she completely blew her cover.

"Take this!" Kuramochi exclaimed out of the blue as he kicked Sawamura.

"Ow! What was that for Kuramochi-senpai?"Sawamura complained as he rubbed his arm in pain.

"Don't tell the team's secrets to our rivals," Miyuki chastised, trailing behind Kuramochi.

"Exactly! How dumb can you be?"Azusa asked Sawamura in anger.

"Azusa!" Mei greeted with gleeful smile.

The manager flinched at the mention of her name and then nervously gulped loudly when she realized that she had definitely blown her cover.

"What are you doing here?" Sawamura asked in confusion.

"She is clearly here to greet her big brother, right Azusa?" Mei said with a conceited smirk. " _Ne_ , little sis I gotta say I'm surprised that you've lasted this long," he added with a tease.

"Sister?" both Kuramochi and Sawamura said in unison.

Azusa glared at Mei for revealing her secret. "Of course not! I was just here to stop this idiot!"she replied in anger, pointing to Sawamura.

"So he was telling the truth?" Harada asked, his towering figure and domineering stance with his arms crossed intimidated Azusa.

Azusa took a step back. "I uh-"

"Yeah, that's true," Miyuki said nonchalantly, cutting Azusa off. "Furuya is not doing very well right now."

"Kazuya," Mei began with a distrustful look. "It sounds like a lie when you say it."

Miyuki chuckled.

"So is no one going to answer?" Sawamura interrupted. "Blondie-chan since when are you his sister?" he asked Azusa while pointing to Mei. "And did you know about this Miyuki Kazuya?!" he then asked, turning to Miyuki.

" _Oi_ , I wanna know too but that doesn't mean you have to ask stupid questions, you idiot!" Kuramochi exclaimed, hitting Sawamura again.

"So you're pitching today, Mei?" Miyuki asked, completely ignoring Sawamura and Kuramochi's

squabble.

"I sure am!" he happily replied.

"Great! Time to collect lots of data!"Miyuki exclaimed.

"Don't ignore us!" Both Sawamura and Kuramochi yelled.

Azusa snorted as she crossed her arms across her chest. "That's what you get for being nosy."

"You better pay close attention, Kazuya," Mei said with a confident smile as he turned to Azusa. "And you too, _imouto_ ," he added turning to leave with Harada who didn't want to spend more time with Miyuki.

Azusa glared at Mei's back.

That cocky smile meant trouble.

What was he up to now?

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The meeting with Mei didn't go as bad as Azusa anticipated but that only was because only Sawamura, Kuramochi, and Miyuki were there. But it wouldn't be long before the rest of the team finds out. Not with Sawamura's big mouth. However, there were more pressing issues at hand.

Like Mei learning the change-up.

' _When did he learn that?'_ Azusa asked herself feeling annoyed. It was obvious that Mei just pitched that change-up to taunt them. There was no way his coach would allow him to pitch that in a mere practice game.

"What was up with the half-assed throw?" Sawamura asked, oblivious to the tense surroundings while Furuya was falling asleep next to him. Everyone was in silence on the sidelines due to the shock of Mei's new pitch and didn't even bother to correct Sawamura.

"You really don't know anything, huh?" Azusa deadpanned while narrowing her blue eyes at the pitcher.

Sawamura growled at her. "It's not my fault that your brother doesn't know how to pitch!"

"If he didn't know how to pitch then, why would Miyuki-senpai tell you to closely pay attention to his pitching, you dumbass? Azusa shot back.

"Brother?" the third years asked simultaneously, momentarily forgetting about their shock.

' _Not again,'_ Azusa mentally whined to herself.

"Narumiya Azusa… Narumiya Mei," Tetsu connected the dots.

"So it's the same Narumiya?" Jun asked.

"We just found out earlier," Kuramochi said, motioning to Sawamura.

"Well, well, well, someone withhold some important piece of information," Ryousuke said with a sly smirk while glancing at Azusa from the corner of his eye.

Azusa's breath hitched in her throat.

"Narumiya!" Jun loudly called out her name.

"Yes?" Azusa replied, her back still to them since she was facing Sawamura.

"Turn around," Jun ordered in a stern voice.

"..."

"Do it!" Jun urged her.

Azusa slowly turned around. "Yes, Isashiki-senpai?" she said in an uncharacteristically low and respectful tone.

"Why didn't you tell us?!" he asked in an exasperated tone that annoyed Azusa.

Taking offense to his tone, the manager glared at him, forgetting all about timidness around him. "Maybe because it's none of your business?" she retorted.

Jun's eye twitched in annoyance. "What did you say?"

Ryousuke just cleared his throat which startled Azusa.

"I m-mean…" Azusa stuttered. Jun, she could handle sometimes. But Ryousuke? No well in hell. He still scared the hell out of her. Even if he didn't say anything to her.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Tanba asked as well.

Azusa felt sweat bead on her forehead and her hands getting clammy. A sign that she was getting nervous. No matter where she looked, she couldn't shake the feeling of the team's eyes on her who were observing her every move. If this was how it felt being the center of attention then she didn't want any of it.

She gulped loudly. "I… Uh…,"

"I bet she is a spy," Sawamura loudly accused her while pointing at her.

Azusa widened her eyes in surprise as she was feeling as if a knife just pierced through her heart. This was it. This was one of her most dreadful nightmares; to be accused of being a spy. She was half-expecting it which is why it shouldn't be that shocking. But what she didn't expect was that Sawamura was going to be the to say it first. She thought the loudmouth pitcher was her friend.

Perhaps she was wrong.

"I-"

"That's enough," Miyuki interrupted in a firm tone. Everyone turned to him, shocked by his outburst.

"But," Sawamura began in protest.

"I said enough," he reiterated a little irritated but later regained his composure. "Interrogating her, it's not going to help you become a pitcher of Narumiya's caliber," he added with a smirk.

Sawamura gritted his teeth in annoyance.

"Besides," the catcher continued. "We have to get ready for next game. Tanba-san?"

Azusa sighed in relief as everyone seemed to switch gears. They seemed focused on the summer tournament and how they were going to get better to defeat Mei.

' _Thank you Kazuya,_ ' the manager said mentally.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

'This is just great,' Azusa thought to herself in sarcasm _.'Just when I don't think it can get worse, it does.'_

After the team momentarily put behind the discovery of her ties with Mei they were looking forward to the last game of the three-way robin. Seido Vs. Shuhoku. This is where Tanba was supposed to show his capabilities as the ace to both the team and the coach. He was doing well with his new pitch and he was working well with Miyuki.

Until he got hit by a pitch while he was up to his at bat.

Everyone was in shock due to the unexpected turn of events. Not one really expected this considering how well things were going with the team. Even the coach who usually had a stoic facade couldn't hide his shock and concern for Tanba as he ran as fast as he could to his aid.

Naturally the match ended, and Tanba was taken to the hospital. After that, gloominess set in the atmosphere and the entire team was abnormally quiet. Usually the cafeteria was filled with chatter and loud laughter from the players who enjoyed their downtime after a day of arduous training. Specially today since it was the end of the hell week. But who could celebrate when a fellow teammate was injured?

If Azusa knew it was going to be this awkward then she would've had Haruno go to the cafeteria and pick up the request notebook instead.

"You still haven't retired for the day honey?" A middle-aged petite brunette with a kind smile asked Azusa.

Azusa smiled at the woman across from her in the kitchen. "Almost done, Tanaka-san," she replied while gesturing at the small notebook.

"Go get some rest soon," the older lady urged. "It's not good to overwork yourself, Narumiya-chan."

"I-"

"See? It's the same last name. I told you earlier! She is Narumiya Mei's sister! I heard it from the upperclassmen," Azusa heard someone whisper behind her.

The manager slightly turned around to see who was talking about her. Immediately two members of the second string team who were sitting behind her turned around.

As her eyes left them, she scanned the rest of the room and suddenly she noticed that some of them were giving her weird looks and whispering among themselves.

"If she's Narumiya Mei's sister then what is she doing here?"

"Does she talk about the team to her brother?"

"Can she even be trusted?"

"She is probably a spy from Inashiro."

"Why is she even allowed to be here then?"

Azusa didn't know whether she was imagining things or not but she could clearly hear those things.

"Are you alright dear?" The cafeteria lady asked, making Azusa snap out of her thoughts.

The manager turned to her. "Yes!" she said rather abruptly. "I have to go now. Good night Tanaka-san!" Azusa said with a slight bow before turning around and started walking rapidly towards the exit.

She had to get out of the cafeteria.

She just had to.

She was feeling as if the room was enclosing in on her and that she couldn't breathe due to everyone looking at her.

She just had to get out of there.

"Blondie-chan!" Sawamura suddenly called out as Azusa was about to walk out the door.

"What?" She demanded in a harsh tone.

The pitcher was unfazed by her tone and approached her as soon as he finished putting down his tray.

"Where are you going so fast?" he asked. "Are you spending the night in the dorms tonight? We can always hang out-"

"Why?" Azusa cut him off while glaring at him.

Sawamura blinked in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Apparently I'm a spy according to you and everyone else," she replied with contempt. "Do you really think that's smart to hang out with spies?" She asked with sarcasm.

Sawamura gave her a baffled look. "But-"

"I have to go!" The manager said before leaving the cafeteria.

She didn't want to listen to Sawamura had to say to her.

It was obvious how everyone felt about her.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Azusa couldn't contain her tears by the time she got to her shared room with Haruno. She broke down sobbing as she threw herself on her bed feeling thankful that Haruno wasn't there so she could be alone. Azusa didn't even bother in turning on the light, already being familiar with her bunk bed. She just wanted to be alone in the darkness along with her sorrow.

She knew it.

She knew that this would happen.

That everyone would shun her as soon as the team found out that she was Mei's sister.

She just didn't know that it would hurt this much.

Despite all of the pain that Azusa was feeling she couldn't bring herself to be truly mad at the team. She couldn't blame them for not trusting her and being suspicious of her true intentions. She had to admit that it did look suspicious that she was the manager of one of her brother's rival teams. But all she ever wanted was the chance to be her own person and grow on her own.

Ever since Azusa was a child, it was always her and Mei since they were close in age. They had two older sisters but since the age gap was so large, Mei was her best friend practically since birth. So she didn't mind that it was just them two. Specially after they discovered the world of baseball after their father had taken them to a professional baseball game. Mei was completely smitten after watching the game and declared to the family that he'd be the best pitcher of which she gleefully responded that she would help him be the best of the pitcher of Japan.

Azusa also was enamored by baseball. The stadium, the bright green grass, the plays, and the suspense. She loved everything. The excitement of never knowing what could happen at any given moment made her fall in love with the sport. Not to mention that baseball also deepened her bond with her older brother. It was the only thing they talked which greatly baffled their family. No one understood their obsession but they were fine with that since they had each other.

Mei had always been a great pitcher. He was even deemed a prodigy ever since he started playing and Azusa was incredibly proud of him. Every step of the way. She always helped him with whatever she could to aid him to make his dream come true and he could become the best pitcher of Japan. And she did it gladly. No one ever forced her to do it. She did it because it made her happy and out of love for her brother.

But towards the end of her junior high years she just couldn't do it anymore. Azusa was starting to feel lost and the sport that united her with Mei so much was starting to drive them apart. As the years passed, everything was becoming more and more about Mei. About how he seemed to always improve with every game, how popular he was, how everyone liked him despite of his bratty personality and how he was definitely going to be a professional player.

Mei, Mei, Mei.

Everything was about Mei.

Which was starting to made her feel very insecure and unsure of her identity. Who she was besides being Narumiya Mei's sister? Did she have a dream of her own? A life of her own? Was she destined to live in Mei's shadow forever? She didn't want to, but she was starting to resent Mei over that. Azusa was completely aware that her confidence issues were not Mei's fault, but she couldn't help but to feel that way. Also, it was not like Mei helped his cause. He always seemed to add fuel to the fire with his selfish personality. Always assuming that she would be there for him. He never seemed to care about what she wanted. He never asked her if she had any interests outside of baseball or if she still wanted to help him at all.

He never asked her how she felt.

Azusa was feeling trapped, and she didn't know how to get out Mei's shadow.

She didn't even think it was possible.

That was until she met Miyuki Kazuya.

The moment Azusa spotted Miyuki at the match between him and Mei where Miyuki bested him back in junior high she was intrigued by him. He was so passionate, determined, resilient, and bold during the game that she couldn't help but to feel a fire inside of her. It was as if his passion for baseball was contagious. She could tell right off the bat that he loved baseball with all of his heart. He was not like the other players who only saw baseball as a club activity. And she couldn't help but to admire his passion.

His passion made her want to feel that same fire that he had. That fire, that drove you to work hard for your dreams and for something that you believed in. That fire didn't allow you to live in someone's else shadow. She wanted to be like him. People like Miyuki don't get eclipsed by anything or anyone.

Azusa envied him for that.

And she also loved him for that.

At first, she didn't do anything to be like Miyuki and was just content with being his friend. Well, she was more than content. Miyuki and Mei were her best friends and nothing made her happier in the world. She stayed complacent since she naively thought that things always would've stayed the same. Just the three of them forever.

But that changed when she found out that Miyuki was going to Seido instead of Inashiro.

Miyuki's decision came as a tremendous shock for both her and Mei. Although they never discussed their high school plans. She've always assumed that Miyuki and Mei would go to the same high school where she would join them as well. Together they would've made an invincible team.

But his decision altered the way she thought things would go.

However, his decision was what made her brave enough to take control over her own life.

' _Kazuya!' Azusa called out as she doubled over, gasping for air. She ran after Miyuki as soon as she saw him walk towards his house._

 _Miyuki, who had just crossed the entrance of his house, turned around. He smirked down at her. "It seems like I'm pretty popular with the Narumiya family today," he said in a sarcastic tone._

 _Azusa widened her eyes in surprise as she straightened up her back. "You talked to Mei today?"_

" _Yes."_

" _About you choosing Seido over Inashiro?" she asked. "Is that true?"_

 _Miyuki paused for a second before answering. "Yes."_

 _Azusa felt her heart skip a beat and her head spin. Her world was unraveling. She was not going to see Miyuki as frequent again. He had go against the future that both her and Mei planned out. She gave him a longing look, as if she was scared that this was the last time she would see him. Azusa took in his figure; he was wearing a purple sweater with black jeans. A change from the uniform that she almost always sees him in. His glasses and his smirk were the only familiar things in sight._

" _Do you want to come in?" the catcher offered. He gestured towards his house._

 _Azusa dubiously glanced at him and then at his home. His home looked like a traditional Japanese western type two story house and next to it there was his father's business 'Miyuki Steel.'Any other day she would've been over the moon if Miyuki offered her to go to his home but now it was different._

 _The air was tense, and it was obvious that he was trying to diffuse the awkward situation._

" _So?" he pressed._

 _Azusa took a deep breath before giving him a slight nod. "Alright then."_

 _Azusa slowly walked behind him while she looked around half-expecting Miyuki's father to come out of his workshop but it was only them until they reached the porch and Miyuki let them in. Which surprised her considering that the sun was going down, and nightfall was coming soon._

" _Tea?" he asked without facing her._

" _S-sure," she accepted while removing her brown combat boots._

 _Azusa had to admit that she was a little nervous. This was her first time at Miyuki's house. Before, she only had met him outside of his house. But this was entirely different. As far as she knew it was a big deal when guys invite girls over to their homes. She looked down at her outfit and inwardly couldn't look a little better? More enticing? She was wearing her favorite worn out light ripped jeans with a red hoddie. Her blonde shoulder-length hair was disheveled, and she wasn't even wearing lipgloss._

 _Plain Jane much?_

 _Azusa furiously shook her head._

 _Now it was not the time to worry about those things._

 _She didn't come for that._

 _She came to obtain answers._

 _Azusa walked through the small living room furnished with a black sofa and a wooden coffee table. There was a mantle above the fireplace with family pictures. She arrived to the long galley kitchen where Miyuki was taking out two white mugs out of the cupboards while the tea was boiling on the stove._

" _You can take seat over there," the catcher said, pointing to the small dining table towards the end of the room, past the kitchen._

" _I'm more than capable of helping you, y'know that right?" she asked with a little sass in her tone. She was trying to be her normal self around him._

 _Miyuki shot her a smirk which lead her think that he was going to tease her. "But then I wouldn't be a good host," he said instead._

 _Azusa chuckled. "I don't think anyone expects you to be one," she teased._

 _The catcher pouted. "You wound me, Azu-chan," he said. "I never have guests over so humor me," he then added in a humorous tone._

" _Fine," she rolled her eyes in faux exasperation as she walked down the kitchen to take a seat at the dining table._

" _Are your parents coming soon?" Azusa asked in curiosity._

" _My dad probably won't come back from his workshop anytime soon," Miyuki nonchalantly replied while pouring the tea from teapot in the mugs._

 _Azusa made a noncommittal sound. "And what about your mom?"_

 _Miyuki stiffened for a quick moment before putting the pot back on the stove but later recovered. He grabbed both mugs and walked towards Azusa in silence. He then set both mugs on the table._

" _She's dead," he replied in an even tone as he took a seat across from her._

 _Azusa gasped in surprise, glancing at him with widened cerulean eyes. She certainly wasn't expecting that response. Even though Miyuki didn't talk a lot about his family, she naively assumed that he had both his parents. And now her assumption had made him uncomfortable._

" _I'm so s-sorry, K-kazuya," she stammered. "I didn't know," she added feeling embarrassed as well._

 _Miyuki gave her a reassuring smile. "It's fine," he said sincerely. "I've never mentioned it so there is no reason why you should know that."_

 _She smiled sheepishly at him, but she was still not at ease. Azusa looked down at her piping hot tea to avoid making eye contact with Miyuki. Not only was she embarrassed, but she was also confused. Did Mei know about this? They did spend a lot of time together without her so maybe he confided in her brother. She has known Miyuki for about three years now and she just discovered that his mother was deceased. What else didn't she know about him? It just dawned on her that she didn't know much about the elusive catcher. After a whole three years._

 _Was she a terrible friend?_

" _So was it Mei who told you about me going to Seido?" Miyuki asked, breaking the awkward silence._

 _Azusa slowly looked up from her tea to meet his brown eyes. "No," she replied in a timid tone. "We met after school and Carlos and Shirakawa were tagging along with him so they were the ones who told me."_

 _Miyuki grinned at her. "Were they going on and on about how I was going to regret my decision?" he asked in teasing tone._

 _Azusa couldn't help but curve her lips into a smile. "Yes," she nodded."Specially Shirakawa."_

 _The catcher snorted. "I'm not surprised," he said. "That kid hates my guts or something."_

 _She laughed. "He really does."_

 _Miyuki joined in her laughter. "I don't know what I did to him."_

" _You're insufferable, but he always has a stick up his ass so probably nothing," she said while stifling her laughter. Then she suddenly stopped laughing. "Ne, Kazuya?" she said in a serious tone._

" _Yes?"_

" _Why did you choose Seido?" Azusa finally asked while glancing at his caramel brown eyes._

 _Miyuki returned her deep gaze. "For a couple of reasons," he replied._

" _Like Takigawa-kun?" she pressed. "He goes to Seido as well."_

 _Miyuki's eyes flickered in curiosity. "Why bring him up?"_

 _Azusa narrowed her eyes at him."Because it always drove you crazy that you couldn't beat him. Not even once," she reminded him._

 _The catcher chuckled before taking a sip of his tea. "You're right," he admitted. "I didn't get the chance to beat him in junior high so I want to compete with him again and take the main catcher's spot from him," Miyuki revealed._

 _Azusa raised an eyebrow in inquiry. "You're willing to pass up the opportunity to form a battery with Mei and being with a great team just so you can compete with that catcher again? Is it that important?"she asked in disbelief._

" _It is," Miyuki said firmly. Without a shred of doubt in his tone. "Also," he began with a confident grin. "The idea of being in Mei's all-star team doesn't sound enticing to me. Where's the fun in that? You know that I love challenges. I much rather be Mei's opponent so I can go against him_ _and his all-star team. Can you imagine how fun it will be? Taking him down?" he asked, barely being able to contain his excitement."_

 _Azusa shot him at quizzical look since she was confused by his reaction. Trying to defeat Mei? "Even if that means not going to Koshien?" she asked._

 _Miyuki smirked at her. "Who said that I was not going to Koshien?" he replied with a question of his own; his smirk widening with each word._

 _Azusa widened her eyes in surprise._

 _How could he be so confident?_

 _Unlike Inashiro, Seido was not doing well since they haven't been to Koshien in years. And now that Mei, who was one of best pitchers in Tokyo, was going to join the team they were going to be a lot more stronger. Not to mention that Mei was going to get stronger as well._

 _He really thinks that he can defeat Mei?_

 _Then again, it shouldn't surprise her._

 _This was Miyuki Kazuya after all._

 _The genius catcher._

 _This was why she had always been so enticed by Miyuki. Because of his drive, determination, and passion. His fire. That fire, that she had always admired and wanted to have on her own. He always inspired her to want to be better. If only she could be more like him._

' _Who said that you can't?' a voice inside her head asked her._

 _Azusa smirked to herself. That was right. Who said that she couldn't be like him? Who said that she was just Mei's shadow? That she couldn't shine brightly like the sun just like Miyuki?_

 _The only one stopping her was herself with her self-doubts._

 _She could… No, she was going to shine in the path that she will forge for herself._

 _No one would be able to eclipse her._

" _Maybe we'll be both at Koshien," Azusa said confidently._


	6. I Won't Give Up!

**Hello there! I can't believe that it's been this long! I profusely apologize for the long wait. It's just that I've been suffering from writer's block and lack of creative energy. I think my job is doing that to me.**

 **If you follow me on tumblr deadlyleomidget then you're going to see that I've been accepting requests and writing prompts to get my creative juices flowing. Now I'm here so I think it worked. I'm still accepting requests so feel free to send me one.**

 **Also, I hope you enjoyed last chapter after the long wait. I tried so hard to make Azusa feel sad and frustrated about how the team reacted to her secret but in a way she wouldn't blame them for feeling that way. I also sneaked in a little MiyuAzu flashback that I didn't even plan on writing. It just came to me naturally.**

 **My hopes for Azusa's character is that she becomes her own self and not similar to my other OCs. She is supposed to be in the middle between Ai and Satomi.**

 **As always, thanks for your support!  
**

 **I apologize for any grammar mistakes.**

 **Feedback is always appreciated.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Daiya No Ace, Yuji Terajima does. I only own my OC.**

 **Enjoy!**

Chapter 6: I Won't Give Up!

' _What am I going to do?'_ Azusa thought with dread as she made her way to the field.

She hadn't seen anyone since the night before and was beyond nervous to face the team. Last night some players were talking behind her back and she feared that the same thing would happen again. She didn't even have the courage to go to morning practice and lied to Haruno saying that she was not feeling well but that she would join them for afternoon practice.

' _Why didn't I lie to stay in bed for the whole day?'_ the manager whined to herself. She was starting to regret her decision as the field came into view.

Azusa made her way to the field with her head down, preparing for the comments, whispers, and pointing. But she didn't get anything like that. She just got a couple of stares from a few of the players in the second and third string but they quickly looked away. They didn't even glare at her or made snide comments. It was as if they didn't know anything about her. The atmosphere was also different. It was gloomy and the tension was palpable. Of course…

' _How can I be so self-centered and stupid?'_ Azusa thought.

They are not saying anything because a more important thing happened. The ace just suffered an injury. Who the hell would care about a measly manager when the ace was down with an injury just weeks before the summer tournament?

' _Dumbass…'_

No wonder everyone was so quiet. Even the third-year players who were always energetic during practice were quiet. She couldn't blame them. It was really hard to see Tanba being hit by a ball like that.

" _Oi_ Azusa-san! Come grab the baskets, so you can start picking up the balls from the field!" Azusa heard Sachiko said from the shed.

" _H-hai_!"

Azusa did as she was told and just focused on her tasks as she would normally do. At first, she felt self-conscious since she was still on edge. But as time went by she started feeling more relaxed which made her feel relieved. Even though she wasn't afraid of confrontations, she really didn't feel like getting into an argument with anyone. Since it was a hard topic for her to talk about. She was also grateful that her _senpai_ or Haruno didn't question her and treated her as if nothing had happened. She briefly wondered why that was.

Although she was glad that there haven't been any issues so far, she was still not 100% content. It just didn't feel right to go on about her day like this. Practices were usually more lively, and the energetic atmosphere was always contagious. But this? This was as dead as a cemetery. This was not the team that she had grown to love in the last couple of months.

Azusa passed by the batting cages with more baskets and glanced at the players practicing. Jun was among them along with the captain, and they were batting as great as always but the passion was lacking. Jun was always loud, specially when he was batting. But now a somber expression replaced his usual lively one. He didn't even have a scowl or was yelling at people.

She understood that it was hard for him since he is also a third-year like Tanba but this was too much. He needs to move team need to move on. If not, then there was no way they would win the summer tournament and go to Koshien.

He needs to snap out of it.

' _He is the vice-captain for god's sakes,'_ Azusa thought in mild irritation.

"Isashiki-senpai! She yelled. "What kind of batting is that?" she taunted.

Azusa started smiling to herself when she noticed that Jun was turning to her. She was expecting a scowl and yelling from him and oddly enough that made her happy. It would mean that she got him to be his usual self even if it lasted only for a minute. However, she didn't receive neither from him. Instead, the only thing she received in turn was a half-hearted glare from him. But he didn't say anything to her. He didn't demand her to respect him because he was older than her, or dared her to say it again to his face.

She got nothing.

Did that mean that he didn't want to talk to her anymore because she didn't tell them that she was Mei's sister? Or was he just too upset over Tanba?

The manager looked at the ground dejectedly. Trying to stop the tears welling up in her eyes and silently cursed at herself why doing it. There was no way that she was going to cry in front of the team and look weak.

"Look at her trying to be all buddy buddy with the _senpai_ ," one second stringer snickered under his breath as he passed by her with another player.

"I can't believe that she showed her face to practice," the other one said.

Azusa gripped the basket as hard as she could until her knuckles were white and bit her lip. She was not going to be easily provoked by anyone. She was also not going to cry. She didn't have the time for that. The only thing she had to do was to prove herself to her fellow managers and the team, so her place in Seido wouldn't be questioned.

' _I'm going to prove myself no matter what,'_ Azusa thought to herself with renewed determination as she walked to the other field. Deciding that it was best to keep to herself. Perhaps, what the team needed right now was a little bit of time to regroup after what happened. So she shouldn't be taunting Jun or any other player for that matter.

' _Including Sawamura,'_ she added to herself.

"Blondie-chan!" Azusa cringed as she heard Sawamura's nickname for could sense that the southpaw was approaching her as if he just read her mind.

"What do you want?" she asked warily, turning around with a basket in her hands.

Sawamura stood right in front of her with a serious expression gracing his features which half- frightened her.

"What is it?" she asked awkwardly.

The pitcher suddenly bowed before her. "This idiot pitcher, Sawamura Eijun, sincerely apologizes for what I said about you!" he said.

Azusa's eyes widened in surprise. "Huh?"

"I never meant to offend you or hurt your feelings," he continued. "I just say things without thinking first."

The manager averted her eyes to mask her hurt expression. "So you didn't mean it then?" she asked in a timid tone.

Sawamura looked up at her as he straightened his posture. "Of course not," he said as if it was obvious. "You're my friend and I trust you."

"Really?" Azusa asked with a hint of relief in her tone and then blushed when she realized how vulnerable she must've sound. "I mean… There is no way that I would plan on being a spy. I don't play dirty like that and neither does Mei," she cooly explained.

"So do you forgive me?" the southpaw asked in a hopeful tone.

Azusa gave him a small smile. "Of course I do," she said. "We're friends."

Sawamura jumped in excitement. "Thank you for giving this Sawamura Eijun a second chance, blondie-chan!"

Azusa gave him a weird look. "Why are you referring to yourself in third person?" she asked trying to stifle her laugh. "Are you reading one of those old books again?"

"I'm just trying to be nice here," he said in an indignant tone.

"You don't have to because you're weirding me out," she teased again. "And besides I already forgave you so we can move on from this as friends."

"So if we are friends, does that mean that you're going to give me all the details about your brother?"he asked with a toothy grin.

"Of course not, _baka_!"

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

After her conversation with Sawamura everything was almost back to normal. Her friendship with Sawamura was intact, Haruichi was still friends with her, and Furuya was also the same as always. She could say that he was the only one who truly didn't care about her being Mei's sister. Even the team was getting to be livelier like they used to be. It seemed that the coach had a talk with both Tetsu and Jun who went back to being themselves. Also, no one has made any rude comments to her. Only stares and the occasional whispers. Which was something that she could definitely handle and ignore. So on her book everything was fine.

Yes, everything was fine.

Except… Except that Tanba was injured and the team depended on Sawamura and Furuya for the summer tournament. There was no way that they were going to win without them. However, despite the fact that they were both great pitchers, they still had a lot of things to learn in the next couple of weeks. Which was almost virtually impossible considering that they didn't have enough time. Even with Chris guiding them it was going to be difficult.

However, Azusa had faith in both of them, and she knew that they could rise to the occasion. They just needed the support from the entire team. Including her. So she determined that she was going to do everything in her power to help them since that was the reason why she came to Seido in the first place.

"So do I get to pitch now?" Sawamura asked Chris in excitement.

"You get to pitch to the most reliable person in the team," the catcher said in mild amusement as he pointed towards the net.

The southpaw started complaining but begrudgingly grabbed the baseballs that Azusa set aside for him and started practicing his pitching.

' _This is good practice to solidify your form but you're too dumb to see it,'_ Azusa thought as she watched Sawamura intently.

"Why do I have to keep doing this?" he was throwing into the net as hard as he could every time without being mindful of any of his body movements which almost made the manager facepalm.

"Why don't you stop complaining and watch what you're doing?" Azusa offered instead. "You're not being consistent at all, _baka,_ " she said with a disapproving head look.

Sawamura stopped to glare at Azusa. "What did you just say?"

"Narumiya-san is correct," Chris said while still looking at Furuya practice with Miyuki. "You're not raising your foot at the same length every time you pitch," he explained.

"Which is why your releasing point is inconsistent," Azusa continued for Chris.

"You need to solidify your form," Chris said in a stern tone.

Sawamura knew that Chris's tone meant that there was no other room for argument and just muttered a quiet "Yes, sir."

"If you want I can record you so you're mindful of your body when you're pitching," the manager offered.

"That's actually a good idea," Chris said.

Sawamura nodded. "That might be helpful."

Azusa smiled to herself, pleased that she actually came up with something that Chris approved of. She forgot the last time she came up with a good idea.

"I'll bring the camera then."

"Hurry up blondie-chan!" Sawamura exclaimed obnoxiously.

The manager raised an eyebrow in irritation. "Who the hell do you think you're rushing?" she asked annoyed.

"You blondie!" he said. "First, we have to record it and then we have to watch it right? So we don't have time to waste!"

Azusa grumbled as she clenched her fists in anger. "Aren't you being a little too demanding?"

Chris shook his head at their bickering. "I hope you have this same energy for studying," he said in a strict tone.

Azusa and Sawamura stopped fighting and turned to Chris while blushing in embarrassment.

"Studying?" Azusa asked in curiosity since she had no idea what was Chris talking about. Yes, he is their _senpai_ but since when does he care about their study habits?

"For the finals," Chris replied coolly.

"Finals?" she exclaimed in shock.

"They're coming up soon," the elder catcher elaborated.

Sawamura burst out laughing. "You really didn't know? Even I knew about the tests!" the pitcher boasted.

Azusa gasped. "Is that why you harassed Kanemaru-kun to help you study?" she asked.

Now it was Sawamura's turn to gasp, but this time around it was out of indignation. "Harass is a harsh word blondie," he said, offended while crossing his arms across his chest. "I just asked him for help and he is helping me study."

"I think it's a perfect word to describe this situation since he doesn't look too happy while he is helping you bakamura," Azusa retorted.

" _Oi!_ You didn't even know about the finals exams coming up so you don't get to call me _baka_ anymore, _baka_!" Sawamura taunted.

"Absolutely not! You'll always be an idiot!"

"You're both idiots," Miyuki said as he came out of the bullpen along with Furuya who have just finished practicing.

"I concur," Chris said in a tone mixed with disappointment but also amusement.

Azusa was going to retort back but she didn't want to keep fighting in front of Chris. There was something about him that compelled her to act better around him or perhaps to pretend to be better around him. Perhaps it was because of the mature and calm aura he always displayed. Or maybe it was because he was the person that Miyuki respected the most and that meant a lot to Azusa. Since very few people truly gained Miyuki's respect. So she wanted to be as composed and mature as possible.

"But what can we expect from them? We got a pack of rowdy first-years," Miyuki continued with his teasing.

Chris merely chuckled.

' _Composure and maturity be damned!'_

"As if you're so much better," Azusa hissed while glaring at Miyuki.

"At least I know when final exams are coming up," Miyuki jabbed. "Not to mention that I don't have to worry about failing," he continued.

"Can we please stop talking about final exams?" Furuya asked in a quiet yet anxious tone.

"And who said that I was worrying?" Azusa asked while facing Miyuki, completely ignoring Furuya.

The bespectacled catcher tried to stifle his laugh. "Don't pretend with me," he said. "We both know that studying is not your forte."

Azusa snorted. "We? I don't remember ever sharing that information with you."

"Mei told me that you were a terrible student," Miyuki said with a smirk.

She grunted in anger. "And who said that he is to be trusted?"

Miyuki grinned to himself. "So you're saying that he is a liar?" he asked.

"Of course!" she said with a conceited smile.

"Then you shouldn't have any issues and will pass all of your exams, correct?" the catcher asked with a knowing smile.

Azusa's smile faltered as she gulped a thick lump down her throat. "I- I don't see why I would have any issues. I'll pass everything!"

"Good! Then I guess we have nothing to worry about, Chris-senpai," Miyuki said while turning to Chris with a cheeky smile.

"You sure have a twisted personality," Chris replied instead while shaking his head in disapproval but Miyuki just laughed.

"So are we finally changing the subject?" Furuya asked again.

"And blondie where is the damn camera?"

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

" _Who the hell does he think he is?" Azusa grumbled in anger as she entered her room and turned on her light. "I can totally pass the finals. They are just dumb tests. I just need to study," she continued mumbling to herself as she walked through the mess that was her room. Casually ignoring her clothes that were scattered throughout the room._

 _She opened her bookbag and sat at her wooden desk next to her window ready to study. She hastily took out her notebooks and textbooks and decided to start with math which was the hardest subject for her. Normally, she'd pick the easiest subject for her first, such as history and avoid math all together. But this time around she was determined._

 _She was determined to prove that damn unfairly wickedly handsome catcher wrong!_

 _The manager started off with some equations as practice. She wrote them down on her notebook with enthusiasm. But her smile started to falter as she stared down at her notebook. The answer to the first equation was just not coming to her head. Hell, she didn't even know what the first step was._

 _She sweatdropped. 'I don't understand.'_

 _Azusa took a deep breath to calm down her nerves and relax, so she could concentrate. "Calm down, calm down Azusa," she told herself. "We just need to re-read the chapter and follow the instructions," she continued with a matter-of-fact tone. Azusa took her textbook and flipped back to the previous chapter that they were learning about._

 _She started reading the first paragraph of chapter seven. 'How to Add and Subtract Algebraic Expressions.'_

 _Azusa snorted. "Who the hell cares? I'll never use this in my life," she grumbled again but was following the steps and was starting to understand the simple equations. However, as she progressed with her studying then she found herself more and more confused since the equations were starting to get more complex._

" _I don't understand! Where the hell is X now?" she whimpered as she tried to make sense out of the equation._

 _5x - 8 + 3(2x- 5)_

 _Why is this so hard?_

 _It was obvious that she needed a tutor but who? Sawamura already took Kanemaru and Haruichi was already helping Furuya or at least trying to help. Haruno was also bad at math just like her so it just would be the blind leading the blind._

 _Who was good at math?_

"Azu-chan! Earth to Azu-chan!" Miyuki called out as he waved his hand in front of Azusa's face.

"Huh?" she looked at him weirded out.

They were walking towards the bus stop side by side through the dim streets of the city. Azusa didn't have a problem with walking to the bus stop by herself but Miyuki always made her wait for him so he could walk her there. Even though she didn't think it was necessary there was no way she would complain about this. She enjoyed their walks together, even if they were quiet sometimes. Usually, Miyuki didn't mind the silence between them while they walked together, but it seemed like this time around he got uncomfortable with how quiet she was.

"You got too quiet for a good minute there," the catcher confirmed with a small grin. "It seems like you were concentrated on something and that's never a good thing."

Azusa narrowed her blue eyes at him in a glare. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I think we both know what's that supposed to mean," he said. "How is little Miss brainiac doing?" Miyuki teased.

She quietly growled in response.

' _He is lucky that he is handsome and smart because otherwise I'd break his pretty face… Wait… smart… Smart. He is smart. So does that mean -'_

"So you're not going to tell me how your studies are going?" Miyuki pressed in curiosity with a teasing grin.

' _Oh hell no! There is no way that I can ask him.'_

"I'm going to take your silence as a 'I haven't even started studying yet' since you're not answering me."

"That's not true! I've been studying!" she said defensively.

The catcher chuckled in amusement. "Good to hear! So you should be good to go then."

"Of course," she said in a conceited tone as she flipped her hair. She was thankful that she didn't have her hair up in her usual high ponytail. "Science, history, and English are all a piece of cake. I'm not worried at all!"

Miyuki smirked. "What about Japanese literature?" he asked with a knowing smile. "And you forgot math as well."

Azusa flinched. "Oh yeah those two," she said nonchalantly but she was cursing herself on the inside. She totally forgot about Japanese Lit and she was struggling a bit in that class. "I'm not worried about them," she added with a shrug.

"So you're a pro at Japanese Lit?"

"Yup!"

"And a math whiz too," he continued with sarcasm dripping from his tone.

"What can I say?" Azusa replied, keeping the same nonchalant tone but she didn't dare to look him in the eye.

"Man, that Mei is a liar, isn't he?" Miyuki asked. "Why did he say that you were a bad student?"

She scoffed. "He is just jealous," she said in a cocky tone. "He is a terrible student and he is probably driving his _senpai_ crazy as we speak."

Miyuki chuckled. "Someone probably has the miserable task of tutoring him right now," he said with a snicker.

Azusa snickered as well. "I bet that Harada-san is the one stuck with tutoring him."

"Me too!"

They both burst out laughing so hard that tears were coming out of their eyes.

Azusa wiped a tear from her blue eye as her laughter subsided. "Mei is lucky. Harada-san is a good _senpai_ ," she said. "Perhaps you could learn from him," she chided.

Miyuki smirked at her as he put his hands in his pockets. "Oh yeah? How? By tutoring my _kouhai_ ?"

The manager shrugged again. "Sure, why not?" she said in a casual tone as she removed an invisible lint from her jacket.

"And now why would I do that for?"

"Because… It's a nice thing to do?" she asked while glancing at his brown eyes with an angelic look. "It's nice to help others out when they are in need."

"Others?" Miyuki asked in suspicion.

"Yeah… You know… Other people," she continued.

The catcher narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "And would you be one of those "other people" by any chance?" he asked with air quotes.

Azusa's cheeks reddened with a small blush. "Maybe," she said in a timid tone while looking away.

"But I thought that you were a borderline genius," Miyuki teased.

Azusa gulped a thick lump down her throat as she felt her hands getting sticky with sweat from nervousness. "Well you know… Even geniuses need help from time to time. Don't you think so?" she offered with a sheepish smile.

Miyuki smirked at her as he chuckled. "Is this really the way to ask me to help you study for your finals?" he asked in a cocky tone.

The manager took a deep breath to calm down her nerves. She also wanted to remain calm because she didn't want to get angry at him since he made it so easy. How could he expect her not to wipe off that damn smirk off his face?

Azusa abruptly stopped walking, making the catcher stop dead in his tracks as well. He gave her a curious look, prompting her to tell him what was going on.

She deeply bored her cerulean eyes into his brown ones with as much intensity as she could muster. "Miyuki-senpai," Azusa began in a respectful tone. "Can you please help me study for my final exams? I really need your help," she asked him earnestly.

Miyuki just stared at her for a few moments without saying anything. He was probably confused by her sudden respectful demeanor. But then his lips curved into his usual smirk. "Of course, there is nothing that I wouldn't do for my precious _kouhai_ ," he said with sarcasm.

Azusa widened her eyes in surprise. "Really?" she asked, shocked. "You're going to help me. Just like that?"

"What do you mean?" he feigned innocence with a wide-eye innocent look.

"You're not going to make me beg or anything like that?" the manager elaborated, not picking up his sarcasm.

"Of course not, what kind of _senpai_ do you think I am?" Miyuki continued with his fake innocence which made Azusa roll her eyes. "Besides…," he began in an abrupt serious tone. "You've done your best to try to help us prepare for the summer tournament with both Sawamura and Furuya," Miyuki said while glancing at her. "I know it's not easy because it's a handful and right now it's not the best environment with all what happened so I really appreciate it," he continued with a small smile.

Azusa felt a warm fuzzy feeling spread all over her body as she couldn't suppress a smile. "Thank you so much, Kazuya," she said happily. She was so glad that Miyuki was acknowledging her effort and also the situation with the team finding out her true identity without really addressing it. Letting her know that he is keeping an eye on her and knows what she is going through.

"Don't thank me yet," he said with an amused tone. "I'm a strict tutor so don't expect me to go easy on you."

Azusa's smile didn't falter. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

Miyuki's grin widened. "Good. So I expect to see you in my room after practice tomorrow night."

" _Hai!"_

For the first time in her life, Azusa was actually looking forward to studying.


	7. Summer Memories

**Hello there! I hope you all enjoyed last chapter after that long hiatus.**

 **If it seemed like Azusa and everyone got over it quickly, then I'll warn you that it's not over yet. It will come again :P**

 **This chapter is going to be very fun because there is going to be some MiyuAzu!**

 **As always feedback is appreciated and please feel free to leave any comments or suggestions.**

 **I apologize for any grammar mistakes beforehand.**

 **Thank you for your support!  
**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Daiya No Ace, Yuji Terajima does. I only own my OC.**

 **Enjoy!**

 **Chapter 7: Summer Memories**

"This is not that complicated. Stop getting distracted and concentrate!"An irritated Miyuki demanded.

"I'm not getting distracted!" Azusa exclaimed in frustration. "It's just that it's hard," she complained with a pout. To be honest she was distracted earlier on when they first started studying. And how could anyone blame her? Miyuki greeted her just as he was coming out of the showers with a towel draped over his shoulders which gave him a different air. A much more relaxed one and the smell of his aftershave was intoxicatingly delicious. Not to mention that his hair looked really good dripping with water.

How did he expect her to concentrate?

Miyuki let out an exasperated sigh as he pushed his rolling chair away from his desk that he was sharing with Azusa. "With that attitude you're going to fail," he chastised.

The manager continued to pout. "I'm sorry for being so stupid Miyuki-sensei," she mocked.

Azusa was sure she was going to either get a retort or a teasing remark but she didn't get either of those as Miyuki just gazed at her.

Miyuki inhaled a deep breath."You're not stupid," the catcher said. "You've mostly been doing well. Just because you're stuck on this, it doesn't mean that you're stupid."

Azusa's lips curved into a smile."Really?" she asked.

The catcher nodded. "Yes, you've improved a lot in the last two days."

Azusa grinned to herself as she looked down at her textbook and re-read the question. After a few moments where she pondered over the question, she looked up and turned to Miyuki.

"Is the answer B?"

The catcher gave her a small smile. "Yes, it is."

She clapped in excitement. "Yes! I guess I've improved a lot, right?"

Miyuki chuckled to himself. "You're just like Sawamura."

Azusa knitted her eyebrows in confusion. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You both love getting compliments," he said while chuckling. "It was as if you two were puppies," Miyuki continued teasing.

"Puppies?" Azusa exclaimed in anger. "So that's what I'm to you? An ANIMAL?"

Miyuki burst out laughing. "Relax, Azu-chan. It was just a joke."

"It's not funny and besides it's not true!"

"You're going to get a heart attack if you keep that up," Miyuki said with a smirk. "I can't have you dying on me. Your mom will kill me if you don't go home tonight."

Azusa snorted. "I doubt it," she said. "My mom likes you more than she likes me. She is probably going to forgive you because I was with you," she joked. "She doesn't even care that I'm getting home late because I'm studying with her beloved Kazuya," Azusa said while rolling her eyes.

"What can I say? Moms adore me," the catcher said in a conceited tone.

Azusa narrowed her eyes at him. "You just have her bewitched somehow."

Miyuki let out a dramatic sigh. "You wound me Azu-chan," he said, feigning to be upset. "I don't think Narumiya-san would approve of your behavior."

The manager scoffed. "Shut up you idiot," she said while she started to fan herself with her hands. "It's starting to get too hot to deal with your Mei- like shenanigans since that is something that he would say."

"Complaining about the hot weather is another 'Mei-like' thing too," he teased. "I remember him driving us crazy with his whining back in junior high."

Azusa laughed as she reminisced. Memories of Mei complaining flashing back in her mind. "Do you remember him when we used to get popsicles after games?" she asked.

Miyuki smiled at the memories. "Yes, Mei would drag us to the nearest convenience store every single time during the summer."

"And he would make such a fuss about his favorite flavors," Azusa said as a scowl replaced her smile since she was remembering how much of a brat he was.

"Tell me about it," the catcher deadpanned.

" _Oi Mei! Why do you always leave me the watermelon popsicles? You know that I don't like them that much!"she complained._

" _Because raspberry is my favorite flavor," Mei replied with an eye roll while he unwrapped his popsicle. "And I'm not going to give you mine under any circumstances!"_

 _Azusa puffed her cheeks. "And you couldn't at least buy a different flavor?"_

 _Mei shrugged. "Those were the only ones left," he said nonchalantly as he licked his popsicle."Have you tried yours, Kazuya?" he asked, turning to Miyuki._

 _Miyuki looked at the wrapped raspberry popsicle that Mei gave him before responding and then looked at Azusa. "Actually," the catcher began. "Azu-chan can have this one."_

" _Really?" Azusa asked with a smile. "You don't mind?"_

 _Miyuki nodded. "I happen to like watermelon popsicles," he explained while offering Azusa his popsicle._

" _Thank you!" she said in excitement and then they exchanged popsicles._

" _Really? Watermelon popsicles are the worst," Mei said while munching on his popsicle._

"What a selfish brat," the manager said while chuckling at the memory.

"And he never stopped doing that either," Miyuki added.

Azusa snorted. "What did you expect from him? He is so selfish that he never shared his popsicles with me!"she angrily exclaimed as more flashbacks came to her.

The catcher laughed at her reaction. "If you pass all your exams, then I'll buy you a popsicle."

Azusa's cerulean eyes widened in excitement. "Really?" she asked with a smile.

Miyuki snickered at her reaction as he shook his head. "You really are like a puppy."

Azusa's smile was quickly replaced by a scowl. "What did you just say?"

Miyuki just burst out laughing.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Azusa stared at her classroom's door in fear as she gulped a thick lump down her throat in nervousness. Today was the day that she would find out about her grades. She forgot the last time she had been so nervous to go inside her classroom since she usually did not stress too much about her grades. As long as they were average, she didn't have a problem. But this time around was different. This time around she promised Miyuki that she would do well on her exams and she didn't want to let him down. Specially after his grueling study sessions. She didn't want him to think that he just wasted his time with her.

The manager took a deep breath to calm down her nerves.

' _Everything is going to be fine,'_ she told herself and then slowly stepped into the classroom. A lot of her classmates were already there so idle chatter was filling the room. She slowly walked towards her desk which was in the middle of the classroom, next to Sawamura's desk. He was already there and she could see that he was shaking.

" _Ohayou,"_ Azusa greeted in a low tone as she took her notebook and pencil for their first period of class.

" _Ohayou,"_ he greeted back in the same shaky low tone.

Azusa gave him a sheepish smile. "Nervous?"

The southpaw nodded.

" _At least I'm not alone,"_ she thought.

"Let's find out our grades together at the same time, blondie-chan," he proposed. "Promise?"

The manager nodded in agreement. "Promise."

Their homeroom teacher stepped into the classroom and told everyone to go to their seats. He was impeccable dressed as always in his brown suit and round thick glasses. He cleared his throat once everyone was in their seats in silence.

"I have your final exam grades ready," the teacher said as he surveyed the student. "I'll be distributing your exams back shortly, and I want silence while I do. We'll discuss them after everyone has their exams back. Understood?"

" _Hai!_ " the class replied back obediently.

Azusa's hands started to get clammy while her heart was beating a thousand miles per hour in her chest. She spared a glance towards Sawamura, and he was sweating bullets which again made her feel relieved.

The teacher was placing the exams face down on each student's table in silence. It seemed as if he was taking his sweet time with the other students because either Sawamura or her hasn't received theirs yet.

' _What is he waiting for?'_ Azusa thought impatiently. _'I just want to get over this.'_

"Sawamura-kun," the teacher said in acknowledgement as he placed the pitcher's tests face down on his desk.

Sawamura put his hand on top of them before turning to his left to face Azusa who was giving him a nervous look.

She could see that his hands were trembling and knew that he wasn't going to be able to overcome his curiosity. Even if he was his idea to wait until they both had their results.

Azusa gritted her teeth in anger. ' _C'mon you gotta be kidding me,'_ she said to herself angrily as the teacher skipped her and went to another student's desk.

' _That old man gotta be doing this on purpose,'_ her irritation was growing exponentially. Not to mention that her classmates' reactions whether silent claps, sighs of relief or groans was driving her over the edge.

As if the teacher read her mind, he hovered over her desk while narrowing his eyes at her. Azusa's throat went dry as she started to shake again. Did he actually read her mind? No, impossible.

"Narumiya-san," he said before placing the tests on her desk.

The manager gave him a small nod, and let out a breath that she didn't even know that she was holding as soon as the teacher walked towards another row.

"Blondie-chan," Sawamura whispered.

Azusa gasped in surprise, startled by the pitcher. She was still shaken by the teacher's actions.

"Are you ready?" he asked.

Azusa couldn't find the strength to say yes. She couldn't even find it in her to tease the pitcher and tell him that she was surprised that he knew how to whisper. Instead, she just nodded.

The manager placed her hand on tests and turned to Sawamura to wait for her cue.

"One, two, three," he counted.

At the count of three, they both flipped their tests over and looked at their results.

' _90 for history, good start but who cares? I've always been good at history,'_ she mused while she put that test down. ' _80 for English which I owe to mother's lessons. What's next? 75 on the science exam? Mom won't be happy, but it's good enough for me,'_ Azusa quietly snickered to herself. She was glad that she was feeling more relaxed and all that tense energy was leaving her body. She was expecting decent grades for those three subjects, but she was pleasantly surprised that she scored a few points higher than usual nonetheless. She absolutely owed it to Miyuki's study sessions. However, the moment of truth will be revealed with her grades for Japanese Literature and Math. The first test that she took was the Japanese Literature one since Math was her worst nightmare.

She glanced at the test and sighed in relief.

85.

' _Thank the heavens,'_ she mused. ' _I'm so glad that Kazuya grilled me with this. My highest grade for this subject had always been a 70.'_

Azusa neatly put the four exams to the side of her desk and stared down at the final one. The math final exam. She took a deep breath to prepare herself for the outcome. She passed her first four exams so even if she failed this one then that would mean that she would only have to take one make-up exam for math. She could live with that. She was positive that overall Miyuki would be happy with her grades.

' _Here goes nothing,'_ she said to herself before flipping the exam over.

The manager gasped. "Oh my goodness," she quietly exclaimed to herself. "I passed," she said in a whisper.

She blinked multiple times to make sure that she was not dreaming. She even shook her head before staring down at the number again.

It was an 80. Clear in a bright red marker. She couldn't believe. She did not just passed. She actually got a good grade on a math test.

Azusa giggled to herself. She couldn't wait to show Mei and brag about her grades since he bad mouthed her to Miyuki. And speaking about the catcher she couldn't wait to show him out of everyone else she knew. Would he be proud of her? Congratulate her? Or tease her by calling her a puppy like Sawamura again?

' _Wait a minute… Speaking of Sawamura… How did he do?"_

The manager turned towards the southpaw's desk in both excitement and curiosity. She was anxious to know how he did.

"I did well on all my finals," she whispered with a huge grin. "What about you?" she whisper-shouted.

Sawamura stared at her back with wide-eyed expression without saying anything.

Azusa blinked in confusion. "Sawamura-kun?"

" _Osh! Osh! Osh!"_ he started screaming as he shot up from his seat.

"I told everyone to be silent, Sawamura-kun!" the teacher yelled in anger from the other side of the room.

Azusa tried to stifle her laughter, but she couldn't control herself and soon she started to laugh out loud.

Soon after the class also erupted in laughter.

"Silence! Silence! I demand silence!"the uptight teacher demanded to no avail.

Sawamura blushed in embarrassment and quietly sit down in his seat.

"So I'm guessing that you passed," she said with a teasing grin before continuing to laugh. "I hope that Furuya had the same luck."

' _And I also hope Kazuya will be happy with my grades.'_

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

' _I have to show him! I have to show him!'_ Azusa thought, speeding through the stairs to reach the floor of the upperclassmen with her grades in hand. After reaching the top of the stairs, the manager made a sharp left turn down the corridor where class 2-B would be. Victory flashed across her eyes as she saw the classroom in the vicinity.

"Miyuki-senpai!" she exclaimed loudly, sliding the door wide open.

All the students that were in the classroom turned to her in confusion and just stared back at her. Forgetting about their previous conversations and lunches.

"He is over there," a meek girl with short black hair and brown eyes, who was next to Azusa told her while pointing towards the back of the classroom, next to the windows.

Azusa followed the girl's direction and once she saw the catcher, she turned to the older girl. "Thank you," she said respectfully.

The manager made a bee-line towards the desk of the catcher oblivious to the fact that Miyuki's classmates were giving her puzzled stares and were whispering among themselves.

"Who is that girl?" someone whispered.

"Is she one of their underclassmen?" a boy asked.

"If so, what a rude freshman," one girl huffed.

"Whoever she is, it seems like she is close to Miyuki-kun," another person concluded.

"What brings you here?" Miyuki asked with an amused grin once Azusa approached his desk.

"And why did you do such a spectacle?" Kuramochi, who was next to Miyuki asked in both irritation and mild embarrassment. "You're just like Sawamura."

"Never mind that Kuramochi-senpai!"Azusa said determinedly to Kuramochi. "I came here for a very important reason."

"Never mind? Never mind that?"the shortstop repeated angrily."So on top of disrespectful you're also daft?"

Miyuki cackled, getting more amused by the situation by the minute. "So tell me Azu-chan, what is your important reason?"

The manager smiled to herself before placing her exams on the catcher's desk. "Look! I just got my grades!" she exclaimed happily.

Miyuki looked down on his desk in curiosity.

"That's your important reason for barging in here like a maniac?" Kuramochi sputtered.

The catcher's eyes widened in surprise while he scanned over Azusa's final exams.

"I'm surprised Azu-chan," he said in awe. "These grades are better than I expected."

Azusa nodded giddily. "I thought the same thing Miyuki-senpai."

Kuramochi snarled. "So you two are just ignoring me?"

"I'm definitely impressed," the catcher continued, ignoring the shortstop. "Great job, Azusa!" Miyuki praised with a genuine smile.

"Thank you so much MIyuki-senpai!" she said with content. "This is all thanks to you. I couldn't have done it without you," she said gratefully as she beamed at him.

"What can I say?" Miyuki began conceitedly. "It seems like I can perform miracles every now and then," he teased but it didn't rattle Azusa at all since she was still smiling happily at him."I guess now I have to buy you some popsicles, right?"

Azusa nodded. "A promise is a promise," the manager replied.

"Popsicles? Popsicles?"Kuramochi repeated angrily. "All of this noise for popsicles?"

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"I still can't believe that I passed everything with stellar grades!" Azusa exclaimed as she headed towards the field with the _ichinen_ trio on tow.

"Same with me. It's a miracle! I've never had such good grades before,"Sawamura also exclaimed, rejoicing along with the manager.

"Congratulations Narumiya-san,"Kominato said with a genuine smile to Azusa. "And Eijun-kun you barely passed so you shouldn't be too happy," he then said to Sawamura.

The pitcher started fuming. "That's not fair Haruichi!" he said offended. "I passed and that's all that matters."

Furuya growled. "Can we stop talking about grades now?"Furuya muttered while his aura started to flare.

"I'm sorry Furuya-kun," the younger Kominato said with an apologetic tone.

On the other hand, both Azusa and Sawamura silently looked at each other and both their lips started to curve into a malicious grin before turning to Furuya.

"Jealous?" the duo taunted.

Furuya's eyes narrowed as he glared daggers towards them. "I'm not jealous," he claimed while his aura flared even stronger.

Both Sawamura and Azusa burst out laughing.

"Sure, sure," Azusa mocked.

"That's why you can't put your aura away," Sawamura continued.

" _Oi,_ you guys are not being nice,"Kominato quietly chastised them. "And you Furuya-kun don't be such a bad liar."

Azusa tried to stifle her laughter."Kominato-kun you can be as brutal as your brother," she said.

"AZUSA!" a feminine voice called out from afar.

The manager gasped in surprise. "Who was that?" she asked alarmed.

"I think it's your _senpai_ ," Kominato said pointing towards the entrance of the field.

Azusa turned around and her throat dried up when she realized that all of the managers were waiting for her.

"Stop wasting time and come here! The coach is about to announce the numbers for the new line-up!"Sachiko continued.

" _H-hai!_ "Azusa said embarrassed and ran towards them, forgetting about Furuya and her teasing.

"Wait for us blondie!"Sawamura yelled behind her once he realized that as actual players they were more tardy than she was.

The _ichinen_ trio trailed behind her and they quickly reached the field where the rest of the team was, awaiting for the coach.

"We barely made it,"Takako sighed in relief while her, Sachiko, Yui, and Azusa took their place by the dugout while the team was in the middle of the field.

The coach arrived with Rei-san and Ota-san trailing behind him.

"I'll be passing out your numbers!"the coach said loudly. "Come and get your numbers as I call your names!" he instructed.

"First, number one, Tanba Koichiro!" the coach announced before taking the number one from Rei's hands.

Tanba was shocked at the coach's announcement and looked as if he was at a loss for words.

"Why is he so surprised? He's the only choice at the moment," Azusa said in a whisper while rolling her eyes.

"Shhhh," Haruno admonished, elbowing her on the ribs.

' _Ouch!'_ Azusa wanted to scream but bit her tongue instead. She didn't want to get in more trouble with her _senpai. So_ the manager just watched silently as the other third-years were teasing Tanba and rubbing his now bald head.

"Continuing," the coach continued. "Number 2, Miyuki Kazuya."

"Yes, sir."

Azusa felt her chest swell with pride as she smiled softly to herself. She already knew that he was going to get this number, but she couldn't help but to feel proud and happy for him.

"Number 3, Yuki Tetsuya."

"I humbly accept."

"Number 4, Kominato Ryousuke."

"Yes, sir."

Soon, Azusa was starting to get that same feeling of pride for the other players as well. She was witnessing all of their hard work get rewarded as they officially got their rightfully earned spot in the line-up for the summer tournament. This was it. Summer has officially begun. Tomorrow was the start of their long and difficult journey to reach Koshien. And this would be the first and last time that they would do it together as this team before the third-years retire.

Azusa grinned to herself in excitement. _"I'm getting all hyped up for no reason. Tomorrow it's just the opening ceremony and then we have to wait for our first official match."_

The manager glanced towards the team that was all huddled together and her eyes focused on Miyuki. She softened her gaze and gave him a grin that he wasn't paying attention to. ' _And you Kazuya? Are you excited too?'_

"Number 11, Furuya Satoru."

"Impressive," Azusa said out loud without realizing it. Furuya was number 18 in the spring so he moved up a lot in the ranks.

"Right? I'm so happy for him," Haruno whispered to Azusa.

Azusa just smiled back at her fellow manager.

' _I'm so proud of you too, Furuya-kun,'_ Azusa mused. ' _Even if you're also a dork,'_ she mentally added.

More numbers were called until the coach reached the last two numbers.

"Number 19, Kominato Haruichi."

"Yes, sir," the younger Kominato said with a small blush.

Azusa giggled at his reaction. _'That was way too cute.'_

"And lastly, number 20."

"Sawa-"

" _HAI!"_ the pitcher yelled before the coach finished his sentence.

Everyone burst out laughing, specifically Miyuki and Kuramochi who were doubling down in laughter. Some people called Sawamura an idiot as the laughter was dying down.

But not Azusa. She smiled as her eyes followed the pitcher going back to his place while gripping his precious number 20 as his life depended on it. She couldn't bring herself to laugh at him or teasingly call him an idiot. She understood.

She understood how he felt.

She understood that this was just his first step towards his ultimate goal of becoming the ace.

"For scorekeeper, Chris can you do it?" the coach asked.

"Yes, sir," Chris said with a nod.

"And the managers." Coach Kataoka began while turning towards them.

' _Managers? Managers? Wait, that's us!'_ Azusa gasped.

The coach was acknowledging them?

"You've all been a great help," he continued with sincerity in his tone before unfolding a game uniform.

"A game uniform?" both Azusa and Haruno asked in shock while gasping.

"You'll cheer on the bleachers as part of the team, won't you?" the coach said.

All five of them smiled and beamed at the coach with gratitude and happiness. They were truly touched at the gesture. So touched that even Takako started crying while hugging her game uniform jersey.

"Takako- _senpai_ is crying," Yui started to tease.

"I know how you feel!" Haruno exclaimed encouraging.

Azusa was too choked up for couldn't describe how she was feeling. They were part of the team now. She was part of a team was the first time that she had ever felt as if she was part of a team. It was a different feeling since she wasn't just with Mei, now she was with her team of managers and players who all had one goal in common.

' _Man, now I'm really excited,'_ Azusa thought to herself. _'So excited that I could jump up and down. I even feel like I'm vibrating.'_

Vibrating?

That was not normal.

Azusa turned to both her right and left side to see if something was amiss, but there wasn't anything and she still felt the vibrations. Then her eyes trailed down her pants and identified the source of the vibration.

It was her phone.

She promptly dug into her pocket and widened her eyes in surprise as she stared back at her cell phone screen.

"Let's go to the kitchen Azusa-san," Sachiko ordered. "We're going to make snacks for everyone to celebrate."

"O-one minute," she replied without taking her eyes off the screen.

Sachiko narrowed her eyes at her. "Don't take too long," she finally said before turning around to follow the rest of the managers.

Azusa just nodded in response.

She was too engrossed with her phone to respond or even notice when someone was approaching.

"Everyone in my class is still raving about your little performance this afternoon," Miyuki said as he walked towards Azusa.

"Is that so?" she said nonchalantly, her head down staring at her phone.

The catcher raised an eyebrow in inquiry since the manager was never one to be distracted by her phone. "What's up?" he asked.

Azusa finally looked up from her phone and just raised it up to his eye level so he could see the screen.

Miyuki took a step forward to see what she was showing him.

She intently gazed at him as she followed his eyes move as he read the text that was sent to her.

 _From: Narumiya Mei_

 _To: Narumiya Azusa_

' _You better be ready for the summer tournament, imouto! I'm going to nationals, and nothing is going to stop me. Not even you, little sister. So don't expect me to go soft on your team. See you at the stadium!'_

The catcher smirked after he had finished reading his rival's text."Is this his version of a declaration of war?"

Azusa smirked as well. "I guess so," she said. "This is not going to be easy. It won't be easy to defeat Mei."

Miyuki's smirk widened. "And it won't be easy to defeat us," he countered with such confidence that caused her spirit to fire up.

The manager smiled at his confident declaration. "So I take it that you're ready, Miyuki-senpai," she said with excitement bubbling underneath her skin.

"I'm more than ready," he replied while grinning. "So I better count on your senpai, Azusa."

Azusa just smiled in return.

' _I won't fail you, Kazuya.'_


	8. Summer Tournament Begins!

**Hello there! Merry Belated Christmas to those who celebrate! I hope you're doing well and that you enjoyed the last chapter.**

 **Last chapter was very fun for me to write because I got to include some Miyuki X Azusa.**

 **This chapter will have some MiyuAzu as well since things are going to kick into gear pretty soon.**

 **Feedback is always appreciated so please feel free to leave any comments or suggestions.**

 **I apologize for any grammar mistakes beforehand.**

 **I also apologize for taking this long to upload. I just need to find the right balance between my job and my writing so I can dedicate time to this fic. My goal for 2020 is to update more frequently. I really want to do better and I feel so bad.**

 **Regardless, thank you so much for your support!**

 **Enjoy, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year!**

Chapter 8

"Why is it so hot?" Azusa groaned out while fanning herself.

"I told you to bring your hat," Haruno who was next to her said, pointing towards the baseball cap that she was wearing.

Azusa just pouted while taking her blonde hair out of her ponytail and put it up in a messy bun instead. "You're not helping, Haruno," she chastised.

"But-"

"Stop complaining, Azusa-san," Takako who was on the far left ordered with a look of disapproval."It's not that hot and besides you're not even playing on the field. Think about how the team is feeling."

The manager grumbled as she managed to say a quick apology before turning her attention back to the game. The summer season just started and they were facing off against Maimon West. Since they were not one of the top teams of the bracket, Azusa thought that she didn't have anything to worry about. However, it seemed that she underestimated the team because the pitcher was shutting down Seido's top batters. Which was making her nervous and more irritable which might be the cause of her excessive complaints.

"They need to figure it out quick," Azusa said to no one in particular.

Haruno nodded in agreement with concern gracing her features.

"I'm sure they'll be okay," Yui said with optimism as Sachiko yelled out encouraging words.

The team was switching gears, and Furuya was getting ready to go to make his summer tournament game debut. Azusa had high hopes for Furuya. At least for this one game. So she was expecting great things from him. As well as with Sawamura but she didn't know if the coach was going to let him play in today's game.

"Is Furuya going to be okay?"Haruno asked in concern as Furuya dropped the ball and started chasing after it.

Azusa let out a small gasp. She was so embarrassed for him that she couldn't even ridicule him for this. _'Am I wrong for expecting great things from you?'_

"He is going to be okay," the blonde manager said. "He has to be," she added, sounding as if she wanted to convince herself more than Haruno.

Furuya geared up to pitch for the first time and as soon as he pitched the ball everyone in the audience gasped in surprise. Certainly not expecting to see such a rapid fastball. The batter couldn't help but to swing at his pitch even though it was the remotest thing from being the perfect pitch.

Everyone was cheering for Furuya as he was going three for three. Including shy Haruno who hugged her.

"Good job Furuya!" the rest of the managers exclaimed.

Azusa smiled in relief, happy that he did better than the batters. But she couldn't find it in herself to jump from joy like her fellow managers. His pitches were way too high and that was going to be a problem in the near future.

The band started playing as Tetsu was going up to the plate for his at bat. He definitely had a special aura and carried himself well with a strong presence. He did not hit the first pitch which turned out to be a ball, but he hit the second ball with no problem, running to first base. Then, it was Masuko's turn who got another hit and now they had two of their players on base. Which meant that Miyuki was next.

Azusa felt her heart flutter as she fought a smile from creeping up on her face while Miyuki walked towards the home plate. The band started playing again for him and everyone started to cheer for him and she felt pride swell in her chest for him. He looked so confident while cool, calm, and collected as well as he stood on the plate. She always found him to look so cool when he was playing which was the total opposite of when he was off the field. Since he was such a dork.

When the pitcher threw the first pitch, Miyuki didn't hesitate in hitting the first ball. Leading both Tetsu and Masuko getting a run each while he got on base himself.

"Yes!" Azusa enthusiastically exclaimed with the other managers and the rest of the team.

"Miyuki-senpai is amazing," Haruno said.

"He is always showing off too," Sachiko chided.

Azusa giggled at Sachiko's comment. Reminding her that she should mock him after the game. As well as reminding him that he can only do that when there are runners on base. Something that his teammates must tease him about all the time.

"Miyuki-kun!" the cheerleaders and some other girls from their school exclaimed, automatically making Azusa frown. Her giddiness long forgotten.

The manager surveyed the audience, sending glares to any girl that was fangirling over Miyuki. How dare they?All of those shallow girls knew nothing about baseball and only liked Miyuki because of his looks. Fangirls never ceased to annoy her even though they haven't been anything new. When Azusa first met Miyuki, she towered over him and he was so small that at times his uniform looked like it was too big on him. But one day out of the blue when he was a second- year in junior high he shot up in height. He lost all the baby fat, and his features became sharper and masucline, not to mention that his voice became deeper. After that summer, all the girls constantly chased after him and whenever they found out that she was his friend, they'd ask her to introduce them.

' _As if I'd do something like that!'_ Azusa thought bitterly.

"Azusa-san, are you okay?" Haruno asked before tapping her on the shoulder.

Azusa turned to Haruno with a bewildered expression. "I'm f-fine. Why do you ask?"she tried to play it cool.

"You look like you're angry," Haruno replied.

"Yes, you were scowling a second ago," Yui chimed in.

"No, I was not!" Azusa exclaimed a little too defensively.

"Are you sure?" the red-headed manager pressed.

"I'm sure," Azusa said with a nod. "I was not angry… I was just a little… Annoyed," she added sheepishly.

"Annoyed?" Yui blinked in confusion.

"Yes, those girls are so annoying," Azusa elaborated."Always making such a fuss over MIyuki-senpai," she explained with a huff.

"But you also cheered for him," Haruno pointed out.

"That's different!" the blonde argued.

"Why is it different?" Yui asked innocently while Sachiko had a smirk behind her.

"Yes, why is it different, Azusa-san?" Sachiko asked, her grin becoming wider.

Azusa felt that her throat suddenly became dry as she stammered.

How was she going to get herself out of this one?

"Girls stop talking!" Takako scolded them again in a stern tone. "How many times do I have to tell you?"

" _Suminasen_ Takako-senpai!" they all apologized in unison.

' _And thank you so much Takako-senpai,'_ Azusa thought with a sigh of relief.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Seido won the first game of the summer tournament with a huge lead, and not to mention without letting Maimon West score in the game. Furuya was doing relatively well which was not that surprising during the , what it was a surprise was that the coach let Sawamura make his debut in the first game as well. Sawamura also did well since he did not let the other team score just like Furuya. She was very proud of them but they both needed to improve tremendously if they have any hopes of winning the summer tournament. Furuya's pitching won't be good enough for the higher level team. In addition, Sawamura walked some unnecessary batters which she knew that wouldn't please both Miyuki and Chris-senpai. She was proven right after both catchers reprimanded the first-year pitchers.

Despite those issues they won the next two rounds without much trouble and they were ready to face their first true challenge in the summer tournament, Akikawa Preparatory school. Their ace Shunshin Yeung was a formidable pitcher due to his unparalleled pitching control. Which meant that this game was going to be defined by how well Seido's batters can handle Yeung and Azusa definitely had hope on their batters' line-up. However, that didn't mean that the pitchers could slack off. They had to show that they could up to par with Yeung.

' _How I wish I could be at the bullpen,'_ Azusa thought as she made her way to the kitchen. She just finished organizing the donations that they got from the alumni in the shed, and Sachiko told her she needed to help with making the snacks next.

" _Oi_ Azu-chan!" the manager heard a familiar masculine voice call out her name.

Azusa turned around to face the owner of the voice whom she already knew it was Miyuki. Since no one else calls her that, at least not at Seido. "What is it, Miyuki-senpai?" she asked in mild curiosity.

"Have you seen Furuya?" he asked while letting out an exasperated sigh and crossing his arms across his chest. "He needs to be at the bullpen, but I can't find him."

Azusa perked up at his last statement. "Actually, now that you've mentioned it, the last time I saw him was when he was running," she replied. "I haven't seen him since then. Or heard him fight with Sawamura for that matter," she added.

The catcher shook his head. "Sawamura is in the bullpen practicing with Chris-senpai."

The manager tapped her index finger on her chin with a pensive look on her face. If he was not by the shed where she was or running on the field, then where would he be? Furuya didn't seem like the type to skip practice. Azusa looked around at her surroundings to see if she got an idea and then something popped in her head.

"What about the indoor practice area?" Azusa suggested.

"I actually haven't looked in there," Miyuki said. "What would I do without you, Azu-chan?" he asked with a grin.

"Keep looking for him for the entire afternoon," she replied with a giggle as she started walking towards the indoor practice area with Miyuki trailing behind her.

"Probably," he conceded. "Thanks for helping me look for him."

Azusa gave him a side-glance. "Don't do that," she said.

"Do what?"

"Be nice," she deadpanned.

"What's that supposed to mean?" the catcher asked offended.

"Exactly what I said," Azusa retorted. "It's weird when you're nice."

"I can have common decency when I want to," he argued right before they arrived at the indoor practice area.

"Sure, sure," she playfully rolled her eyes."Is he in there?" she asked since Miyuki took a step in front of her.

"Let me-" he began saying and then gasped in surprise.

"What's wrong?" Azusa asked in concern since he didn't even see finish his sentence. The manager took a peek inside the building and let her eyes scan the room. She gasped as her eyes zeroed in a certain pitcher sleeping soundly on one of the benches.

' _Is he really taking a nap? Furuya-kun never struck me as the type to slack around,'_ the manager mused. She then turned to Miyuki in burning curiosity since he was too quiet.

The catcher's reaction also took her by surprise. Instead of a teasing grin or looking as if he was about to start to burst out laughing; a look of complete shock graced his features as he was rendered speechless.

' _I guess that there are some things that he can't even joke around with,'_ Azusa thought in amusement.

Suddenly Miyuki clenched his fists, and the shocked expression was quickly replaced by a scowl as he gritted his teeth in anger.

"Wake up!" he angrily yelled which startled Azusa and woke Furuya up.

"You'd better be done running!" Miyuki added, still angry at the pitcher.

Furuya sluggishly got up from the bench. "Yes, I'am," he replied in a groggy tone.

' _Remind me not get on his Kazuya's bad side,'_ Azusa thought as she saw him glare at Furuya.

"You need to pitch in the bullpen," Azusa said to Furuya in the best soothing tone that she could muster. Usually, she would act the same way that Miyuki was acting but this time around she couldn't bring herself to do it. Furuya looked so tired and pale, and she didn't want to push him any further.

"Exactly so we need to get out of here!" Miyuki continued berating him.

"No, it's hot today," Furuya said with slumped down shoulders. "I'll be there in a little while."

"Hot?" the manager repeated in disbelief.

What the hell he was saying?

"It's summer, of course it's hot!" Miyuki retorted.

"I think he got your point Miyuki-senpai," Azusa said trying to calm down the catcher. "Why don't we head towards the bullpen now?" she suggested.

Miyuki rolled his eyes as Furuya begrudgingly got up from the bench and trailed behind them.

"You didn't finish your meal yesterday either," the catcher resumed while they walked out of the indoor practice area."You're not gonna last if you don't eat right."

Azusa groaned as they walked since the sun was beaming down on them even harder than before. _`'Why does it have to be so damn hot?'_

The manager peered over her shoulder to see how the pitcher was doing. While Miyuki was going on about how they were in the middle of a tournament and this summer was unusually hot. Not that she needed a reminder, since the glaring sun was enough.

Furuya appeared not to be listening as he breathed heavily and then Miyuki suddenly stopped in his tracks.

Azusa blinked in confusion. "What's wrong, Miyuki-senpai?"

Miyuki turned to her with widened eyes and a similar shocked expression from before. "It's summer," he simply replied as his eyes examined Furuya's figure.

"Huh?" she exclaimed confused.

Miyuki turned to her. "It's a very hot summer, and he is not from Tokyo," he elaborated.

Azusa was still confused by his statement but then gasped when she realized what he was talking about. "He is from Hokkaido."

The catcher nodded since she was catching his drift and then they both turned to the first-year pitcher in concern.

"No wonder he's looking like he is melting," Azusa said. "This is his first summer in Tokyo, so his body is not used to this."

"This is not good," Miyuki said while massaging his temple. "We don't know how this is going to affect his pitching. Maybe it's not a good idea to bring him to the bullpen."

Azusa shook her head. "You need to check his pitches," she said. "So we can see how well he can pitch under these conditions."

Miyuki let out a sigh. "You're right, but…" he trailed off.

"But what?"

"There is a lot of press by the fields, and I don't want them to see him like this."

"So just be quick about it."

"Fine, but don't be too loud," he chastised.

Azusa shot him a confused look. "What do you mean?"

Miyuki took a look at Furuya before directing his attention towards Azusa."I don't want Furuya to catch on," he said in a low tone. "That idiot will probably push himself even more if he thinks that we're taking it easy on him because of this."

The manager nodded. "You're right. He is too simple-minded, just like Sawamura."

Miyuki snickered. "You're one to talk," he teased with a grin adorning his features.

Azusa growled. "What's that supposed to mean? Are you comparing me to those two?"she asked in anger, but was relieved deep down inside since Miyuki reverted back to his old self.

"Haven't you realized that you're just like them?" the catcher continued with his teasing.

Azusa narrowed her cerulean eyes as she clenched her fists. "Mi-yu-ki-sen-pai," she growled out.

" _Ano_ ," Furuya interrupted them, making the pair turn to him. "Weren't we supposed to go to the bullpen?" he asked, in a strained tone as he was panting.

"Oh yeah, you're right," the manager said, mildly embarrassed."We should go now."

Miyuki raised an eyebrow in inquiry. "We?"

"Yes, we," Azusa repeated while rolling her eyes.

"So does that mean that you don't have to go somewhere else? I find it difficult to believe that Umemoto-san didn't already have more tasks lined up for you?"the bespectacled catcher with a smirk.

"Of cou-" Azusa began to say but then gasped in horror when she realized that he was right. Sachiko did tell her that after she was done at the shed, she had to help out with the snacks.

"Oh no," she said in despair as she went pale. "I have to go!" Azusa exclaimed which just made Miyuki gloat.

"Please don't tell Sachiko-senpai that I was with you," the manager pleaded before running towards the kitchen.

"We sure have some rowdy first-years," Miyuki said to no one particular before nudging Furuya to follow him to the bullpen.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Thankfully, Azusa did not get in trouble with the managers since she managed to come up with an excuse. She didn't know for sure whether it was convincing or not but since no one said anything, she didn't think much about it. After that, she decided to lay low for the rest of the day. Now, that the tournament was progressing they were starting to face off against some higher level teams. So she certainly wanted to have the chance to help the pitchers out in the bullpen any chance she got. However, that role was usually reserved for Takako-senpai when Chris was around who also handled the scorebook.

' _Perhaps that could be me one day,'_ the manager thought with a small smile to herself. She just needed to behave and then she will be rewarded. Nothing was going to steer her away from her goal.

' _Maybe tomorrow I can be in the bullpen if the senpai see this beautifully organized shed,'_ Azusa gave the shed one more look before reaching for the keys to lock it. This was her last task for the day and then she could go home. She let out a dejected sigh as she remembered how she probably blew her chance when Sawamura presented it to her earlier.

" _Blondie-chan!" she heard Sawamura called out her name._

 _The manager groaned. "What?" she asked with annoyance dripping from her tone as she turned around to face him. "Don't tell me that you want another tire."_

 _Sawamura shook his head. "No, I want you to catch my pitches instead!" he exclaimed._

" _Huh?" the manager gave him a perplexed look with a wide-eyed look._

" _You heard me!"_

" _But why?" Azusa asked, still confused. "Where is Miyuki-senpai or Chris-senpai?"_

 _Sawamura crossed his arms across his chest as he huffed in annoyance. "Miyuki-senpai doesn't want to catch my pitches."_

" _And what about Chris-senpai?" she asked not surprised at his first answer._

" _Well… I- uh- I can't seem to find him!"Sawamura sputtered._

 _Azusa narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "More like he is avoiding you," she muttered._

" _That's not true! Chris-senpai is not like that tanuki bastard!"_

" _Even Chris-senpai's patient has a limit so don't test it," the manager warned. "However, there is more to your request," she added suspiciously._

 _The pitcher gasped in surprise. "Are you a witch?" he asked._

 _Azusa scoffed. "No, you're just terribly obvious," she replied curtly. "So what is it?"_

" _I truly want you to catch my pitches."_

" _Why?"_

" _Well… Narumiya is your brother right? Haven't you caught his pitches? If you have then, it won't be hard to catch for me," Sawamura reasoned._

 _Azusa burst out laughing. "What kind of reason is that?"_

 _The southpaw started to blush. "Oi! Don't laugh!" he demanded. "It makes total sense."_

" _How?" she asked. "Mei actually has control."_

" _What about before?"_

" _That never really has been an issue for him."_

" _Now you're just showing off!"_

 _Azusa smirked. "You're the one who asked."_

 _To her surprise, Sawamura responded to her smirk with one of his own. "I get it now," he began with a smug tone. "You're just scared."_

 _The manager frowned. "Scared of what?"_

" _Scared of my pitches," he replied as if it were obvious._

" _I'm not scared of anything!" Azusa exclaimed. She knew he was just trying to rile her up and get her to catch his pitches. But she couldn't help but to react in the way that he was expecting her to do. She always had an affinity for proving people wrong._

" _Then prove it by catching my pitches!" Sawamura goaded her._

 _The manager shot him a sharp glare. "Can you be more original?"_

" _Can you be less of a scaredy cat?" the pitcher countered with a cocky grin._

Azusa gave him another icy glare. "You're hanging out too much with Miyuki-senpai."

" _W-what's that supposed to mean?" Sawamura stuttered. "I'm nothing like him."_

 _The manager rolled her eyes."It means that you're trying too hard bakamura," Azusa said in a curt tone. "Usually, I would play along and catch for you, but you ruined it. You're out of luck."_

" _What? But why?" the southpaw whined._

" _If both Miyuki-senpai and Chris-senpai refused to catch for you then I'm sure there is a good reason why," Azusa replied while locking the door of the shed equipment. "Maybe next time," she added with a smirk and left a dejected pitcher behind._

' _Maybe I should've caught his pitches,'_ Azusa thought. _'I missed my chance to do something meaningful, just to mess with him. Stupid Bakazusa,'_ the manager internally berated herself while she collected her things to go wait for Miyuki.

' _Tomorrow is the game with Akikawa, so I should just concentrate on that and stop playing around. My chance will come again!'_

"Azu-chan!" she heard the catcher's familiar tone call out her name.

"Miyuki-senpai," she said in curiosity while she turned around. "Were you about to wait for me?"

"Not quite," the catcher said with his usual cocky grin. "I'm glad I caught you while you were on your way. I was wondering if you didn't mind going home a little bit later? I want to show you something."

Azusa narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "What?"

"I don't quite know yet, but I'm sure it will be interesting," Miyuki replied.

"What are you talking about?" she asked, more confused than ever.

Miyuki let out a fake exasperated tone. "Just follow me," he ordered.

Azusa puffed her cheeks in annoyance. "Fine, but it better be good or I'll make you pay," the manager threatened. She was already tired and wanted to go home already.

" _Hai, Hai,"_ the catcher said with a chuckle as he turned on his heel to start walking towards the practice field with Azusa trailing behind him.

"Who is practicing out in the fields at this hour?" the manager asked as she noticed one of the fields' lights was on.

"That's why we are here to see," Miyuki cheekily replied.

"So you brought me all the way back here, and you don't know?" Azusa asked angrily, clenching a fist in annoyance.

"I thought you would like the surprise," the catcher teased as he stopped by one of the poles. "Now be quiet and watch," he ordered while motioning towards the field.

"Don't tell me what to do," Azusa grumbled under her breath and stayed right behind Miyuki. She was so close to him that she could smell the scent of soap mixed in with his earthy scent but decided not to think about it. Instead, she just peered over his shoulders towards the field.

The manager left out a small gasp. "It's Sawamura who is pitching," she noted and then her eyes traveled towards the batter and catcher. "With Chris-senpai and… Kanemaru-kun. Oh poor guy. Standing in the batter's box all geared up like that."

"He is also standing on the left side," Miyuki noted. "Chris-senpai is having Sawamura practice for tomorrow's game against Akikawa."

"Oh yes, most of the batters are lefties, so it makes sense," she said. "Specially after Furuya is having such a hard time with the hot weather," Azusa added with concern. "It seems like Sawamura is trying to pitch to the inside."

Miyuki snickered. "Trying? Azu-chan you can be meaner than me sometimes," he said while chuckling.

The manager rolled her eyes. "Shut up, I'm tired," she said while she rested her forehead on his shoulder. Normally, she would be more self-conscious about having any type of physical contact with the catcher, but now she just didn't care. She was tired and needed someone to literally lean on to.

"It seems like things just got more interesting," Miyuki said to her, unfazed by her actions. "The coach just got here."

Azusa looked up immediately. "Really?" she asked as her eyes scanned for the field.

"How much do you want to bet that he just called the coach something stupid?" Miyuki asked in amusement.

Azusa grinned at him. "My entire allowance. That'd be the easiest bet ever," she said.

"Is the coach going to step in as a batter?" the manager asked, surprised. "And Sawamura is going to pitch?"

Miyuki chuckled. "Aren't you glad I dragged you here? Things are getting so interesting."

Azusa didn't say anything in return and just gripped Miyuki's arm in anxiousness. "He really is going to pitch here, under all that pressure?" she gasped as she watched Sawamura gear up to pitch to the coach with a fearless determined expression on his face. "He really can be amazing sometimes, can't he?"

The catcher smirked while tilting his head back to face Azusa who was still holding onto him. "Well, that has always been one of his strengths."

"Damn that Sawamura! How dare he fire me up right now?"Azusa exclaimed in annoyance.

The catcher burst out laughing. "You really are just like him too," he chided.

Azusa blushed in embarrassment. "W-what are you talking about?" she stammered. "I'm not acting anything like him. He is so much louder than me."

"Not by much, though," Miyuki noted. "Also, we can mention that you both have no problem invading other people' personal space," he said with a grin, pointing to her holding his arm.

Azusa's blush deepened and she immediately let go. "I didn't think it bothered you," she said before looking up with an accusing tone. "It's not like you complained or anything."

The catcher smirked. "I didn't mind," he simply said.

Azusa glared at him. "Then why are you complaining?"

"I'm not complaining, it was just an observation," the catcher clarified."I wouldn't be bothered by that since it's you."

Azusa's heart skipped a beat, and her face was still flushed. "What do you mean by that?" she asked carefully.

' _Is this going to mean something special?'_

Miyuki just shrugged. "That's it's just… You," he started to explain with such eloquence.

"I know what?" she pressed.

"I've known you since practically forever, you're like an annoying little sister."

Azusa blinked several times in shock.

The manager gasped. "A sister?" she exclaimed perplexed, hoping that disappointment was not detected in her tone.

How dare he fool her like that? Making it seem that there was more to it...As if they were... As if they shared a...

"Azu-chan?" Miyuki called out. "Are you zoning out?" he asked in a teasing tone.

' _How can I be so stupid?'_

Azusa just took a deep breath and turned her back to Miyuki. "I think it's time to go since we've seen what we came to see," she said in an odd, eerie calm tone before she started to walk.

" _Oi_! What's wrong? You're walking too fast!"The catcher kept calling out concerned while he trailed behind her this time around. Wondering what he had said that upset her so much.


End file.
